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3232‘Star Trek: Discovery’ First Impressions of Pilot + Red Carpet Coveragehttps://trekmovie.com/2017/09/19/star-trek-discovery-red-carpet-premiere-live-coverage/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/09/19/star-trek-discovery-red-carpet-premiere-live-coverage/#commentsWed, 20 Sep 2017 05:00:52 +0000http://trekmovie.com/?p=50917Tuesday evening was red (actually blue) carpet premiere for Star Trek: Discovery in Hollywood. We had staff there covering it who were also able to see the 2-hour premiere. Below we have assembled some of the instant reactions to the event by the TrekMovie team and others along with some of our blue carpet tweets. We will have more coverage of this event in the come days.

CBS Facebook Live video feed of red blue carpet

Live feed has ended. The archive of it is still available for Facebook users in the USA.

Star Trek: Discoverypremieres on September 24th on CBS with all subsequent episodes on CBS All Access in the US. In Canada Star Trek: Discovery will premiere on Bell Media’s CTV and the Space Channel on the same night. Netflix will launch Star Trek: Discovery on Monday, September 25 to countries outside of the U.S. and Canada.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/09/19/star-trek-discovery-red-carpet-premiere-live-coverage/feed/164Karl Urban Says Cast Is Keen To Return For ‘Star Trek 4’ – Wants It To Explore McCoy’s Familyhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/09/17/karl-urban-says-cast-is-keen-to-return-for-star-trek-4-wants-it-to-explore-mccoys-family/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/09/17/karl-urban-says-cast-is-keen-to-return-for-star-trek-4-wants-it-to-explore-mccoys-family/#commentsSun, 17 Sep 2017 20:11:03 +0000http://trekmovie.com/?p=50870Karl Urban – aka Dr. Leonard ‘Bones’ McCoy in the Kelvin movies – made an appearance at The Continuing Voyage Convention in Chicago on Saturday, and TrekMovie was there. The actor talked about his hopes for another Star Trek movie, a rejected idea for McCoy in Star Trek Beyond, and how he missed out on being James Bond. He also had a visit from TNG’s Brent Spiner.

Urban and cast “keen” for Star Trek 4 – wants to see McCoy’s family

Of course, during the Q&A, a fan asked Urban about the next Star Trek movie. Urban didn’t offer any news on progress on the project, but he did discuss how he and his fellow actors are ready to go, saying:

We will be blessed if we could get to make another one, we really would. And we would all be very, very keen to do so because we have so much fun making these movies. I tell you, the challenge literally is to stop laughing before the cameras start rolling. We are a tight family.

Urban’s comments are similar to those reported by TrekMovie two months ago from his appearance at Star Trek Las Vegas, where he said everyone was waiting on Paramount to make a decision about the future of Star Trek on the big screen.

Karl Urban talks to fans at Continuing Voyage Tour Chicago 2017

Responding to the question on what he might like to see for his character for a possible fourth feature film, Urban said he would like to get more into McCoy’s family:

Perhaps it would be interesting to see something of McCoy’s family. His ex-wife and daughter and that dynamic.

Urban’s Kelvin timeline version of McCoy was established to be divorced in the 2009 Star Trek movie. The notion of McCoy having a daughter shows how much of a fan Urban is, as that was something only mentioned in the TOS writer’s bible and eventually on the animated Star Trek show from the 1970s.

Karl Urban complains about his ex-wife in Star Trek (2009) – would like to see his family addressed in next Star Trek feature

Urban wanted McCoy to deal with taking a life in ‘Beyond’

Urban also talked to fans about an idea he wanted involving McCoy having a moral dilemma about taking a life in Star Trek Beyond, but the notion was ultimately rejected.

There is something that I really wanted to do in Star Trek Beyond, that didn’t didn’t quite make it. The template is sort of set up as McCoy joined Starfleet as a doctor to save lives. And I was very interested – because until this point in the series we had never seen him have to defend those sets of principles and values that he was signed on to uphold. I thought it would be very interesting to see him wrestle with his conscience about him having to take a life as opposed to save a life, particularly when Spock and McCoy were stranded down on the planet. However, it didn’t quite transpire that way in the final cut. To me I thought that would be an interesting existential place to go in.

Karl Urban and Zachary Quinto in Star Trek Beyond

Urban talked to Bond producers about playing 007 before Daniel Craig

Karl also talked about another iconic role he may have taken on a decade ago. The actor was asked if a report on the Internet was true, that he was offered the job of playing James Bond before it was offered to Daniel Craig. Urban clarified that the report was not entirely accurate, noting he did have a meeting but wasn’t able to audition:

What happened was while they were casting [for the new Bond] I had been to a preliminary meeting with [Bond films producer] Barbara Broccoli, which went fantastically well. When it came around to doing the auditions and screen tests unfortunately I was filming a movie at the time and I couldn’t get out to do the screen test. That being said, I am glad because I think Daniel Craig is a superb Bond.

Urban was shooting the films Doom and Out of the Blue around the time Casino Royale (the first Bond film with Daniel Craig) was in development. Less than a year after Casino Royale was released, Urban signed on to play McCoy in Star Trek.

Urban in Doom and Craig in Casino Royale

Spiner crashes panel

One of those fun con moments happened during Urban’s panel when Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Brent Spiner took to the Q&A mic to ask “Mr. Irving” a question about his Into Darkness co-star, “Benedict Cucumber.” Somehow the interaction ended up covering the Beatles and then even got a bit racy on the “cucumber” theme.

Brent Spiner has some questions for “Mr. Irving”

You can watch the interaction below via this video (courtesy of Tyler Ninness)

More from Continuing Voyage Chicago

Karl Urban takes a selfie with a fan on stage at Continuing Voyage Tour Chicago 2017

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/09/17/karl-urban-says-cast-is-keen-to-return-for-star-trek-4-wants-it-to-explore-mccoys-family/feed/93Rainn Wilson Offers TrekMovie Readers Double Chance To Win ‘Discovery’ Premiere Contesthttps://trekmovie.com/2017/09/04/rainn-wilson-offers-trekmovie-readers-double-chance-to-win-discovery-premiere-contest/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/09/04/rainn-wilson-offers-trekmovie-readers-double-chance-to-win-discovery-premiere-contest/#commentsMon, 04 Sep 2017 21:30:09 +0000http://trekmovie.com/?p=50541Earlier this month we reported Rainn Wilson (who plays Harry Mudd on Star Trek: Discovery) launched contest supporting his charity Lide Haiti. Donations to the charity give you a chance to win a trip for two to the September 19th Hollywood premiere of Discovery. The winner will be able to join Rainn and the cast of Star Trek: Discovery at the show’s cast party, walk the red carpet, and attend the after-party as Rainn‘s guest.

There are various levels of donations, starting at $10 and each level offers perks and prizes. For each dollar you donate you get 10 prize entries. And now the contest is offering TrekMovie readers a chance to double their entries. So now your $10 donation gives you 200 entries and your $25 donation gives you 500 entries and so on. To to make a double contest entry donation CLICK THIS LINK.

All proceeds of the fundraiser go to benefit girls education in Haiti through the Lide Haiti. For more on the contest, here is a video Rainn (with a help from a little friend) sent out over the weekend.

As noted in the video, there is another way to guarantee a spot as a guest of Rainn and that is through the charity auction site charitybuzz.com/harrymudd. The highest bidder wins, and currently the high bid is at $1,850 with an estimated value of $5,000

Star Trek: Discoverypremieres on September 24th on CBS with all subsequent episodes on CBS All Access in the US. In Canada Star Trek: Discovery will premiere on Bell Media’s CTV and the Space Channel on the same night. Netflix will launch Star Trek: Discovery on Monday, September 25 to countries outside of the U.S. and Canada.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/09/04/rainn-wilson-offers-trekmovie-readers-double-chance-to-win-discovery-premiere-contest/feed/14Terry Farrell and Adam Nimoy To Wedhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/08/21/terry-farrell-and-adam-nimoy-to-wed/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/21/terry-farrell-and-adam-nimoy-to-wed/#commentsMon, 21 Aug 2017 08:52:43 +0000http://trekmovie.com/?p=50298Congratulations are in order for two members of the Star Trek family. Over the weekend Star Trek: Deep Space Nine star Terry Farrell confirmed that she was engaged to be married to Adam Nimoy, son of Star Trek legend Leonard Nimoy. The news first came via Access Hollywood’s Scott Mantz and was confirmed by Terry via Twitter.

There is no word yet on when or where the pair plan on tying the knot, but there is a good chance some Star Trek royalty will be on hand to wish the couple well.

Awkward?

Of course some fans have noted that there may be a bit of awkwardness due to a scene in the DS9 episode “Trials and Tribble-ations” when the crew traveled back in time to the era of the original Star Trek and while there Jadzia expressed her attraction to Spock, played by Adam’s father.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/21/terry-farrell-and-adam-nimoy-to-wed/feed/46William Shatner Was Originally Against Going Back To ‘The Original Series’ For ‘Star Trek II’https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/18/william-shatner-was-originally-against-going-back-to-the-original-series-for-for-star-trek-ii/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/18/william-shatner-was-originally-against-going-back-to-the-original-series-for-for-star-trek-ii/#commentsFri, 18 Aug 2017 19:03:50 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=50270In September Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is returning to theaters for two special 35th anniversary screenings which will also feature a new interview with star William Shatner. In a new interview with IGN promoting the event, Shatner talked about making what most consider the best film of the franchise.

Of course Star Trek II brought back the character of Khan Noonien Singh from the original Star Trek episode “Space Seed” but when asked about the development of the film, Shatner admitted that he was originally against the idea of tying the movie to an element from TOS, saying:

I recall that they began to talk about the second movie, and the talk began to be about what segment of the 79 [TV episodes] that we shot would be useful. And I kept saying, why do we want to go to a segment? Why don’t we invent something absolutely new? And the people in charge were much more aware than I was that the fans would be more sympathetic to… [it] would be a better vibration if it echoed a popular hour from the series, and make that, and then further the story as a film. And they were absolutely right that there was a ramification doing it that way, and the fact that the actor [Ricardo Montalban] was able to repeat his role was another singular advantage.

Shatner also acknowledged that Montalban’s Khan was a critical element in making Star Trek II work, including elevating his own character of Kirk:

…it’s a truism, that the more powerful the villain is the more powerful the hero. If the hero can overcome a powerful villain, look how much stronger that makes the hero. So the better the villain, the better the hero.

There is much more good stuff in the full IGN interview including Shatner talking about his acting process for key scenes like the death of Spock in Star Trek II and the death of his son in Star Trek III.

Star Trek II is returning to theaters in September

Wrath of Khan back on the big screen

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan 35th anniversary screenings (including a new interview with William Shatner) will be showing Sunday, September 10, and Wednesday, September 13, at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. local time each day at 600 select movie theaters in the USA. Tickets can be purchased online by visiting www.FathomEvents.com or at participating theater box offices.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/18/william-shatner-was-originally-against-going-back-to-the-original-series-for-for-star-trek-ii/feed/50Jason Isaacs Attempts To Clarify Controversial Comments About Star Trek Fanshttps://trekmovie.com/2017/08/16/jason-isaacs-attempts-to-clarify-controversial-comments-about-star-trek-fans/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/16/jason-isaacs-attempts-to-clarify-controversial-comments-about-star-trek-fans/#commentsWed, 16 Aug 2017 19:35:42 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=50245Over the weekend, the New York Daily News ‘Confidential’ gossip column reported some controversial comments from Star Trek Discovery’s Jason Isaacs, who plays Captain Lorca of the U.S.S. Discovery. The article got the notice of Star Trek’s first captain, William Shatner, and has resulted in an exchange of tweets between the two actors.

Tabloid quotes Isaacs talking about ‘outraged’ Star Trek fans

The article quotes Isaacs saying:

“I don’t mean to sound irreverent when I say I don’t care about the die-hard Trek fans. I only ‘don’t care’ about them in the sense that I know they’re all going to watch anyway. I look forward to having the fun of them being outraged, so they can sit up all night and talk about it with each other.”

The column also added the following, but without any attribution: “Isaacs, 54, said the new show will throw away the legacy of William Shatner and Patrick Stewart.”

Shatner responds

Apparently that bit about legacies got the attention of William Shatner, who tweeted a screen grab of the article to Isaacs with a ‘hushed face’ emoji:

Isaacs clarifies and issues a dare

As it was from a gossip column and possibly being taken out of context, we awaited Isaacs’ response, which came late Tuesday night. He took exception to the NYDN coverage, denying he said anything about the legacy of Shatner and attempted to clarify his comments about fans. Isaacs also followed up his response to Shatner with another tweet, apparently directed to fans who took umbrage with the comments from the Daily News:

That said, for the few idiots offended enough to tell me 1) to go fuck myself and2) they'll never watch1) I'm my top choice2) I dare you

Shatner just responded to the first tweet, and he seems to accept that Isaacs was not being portrayed accurately by the Daily News (which he refers to as the Daily Mail, which is actually from the UK).

So that appears to be it with this latest little Discovery controversy.

Star Trek: Discoverypremieres on September 24th on CBS with all subsequent episodes on CBS All Access in the US. In Canada Star Trek: Discovery will premiere on Bell Media’s CTV and the Space Channel on the same night. Netflix will launch Star Trek: Discovery on Monday, September 25 to countries outside of the U.S. and Canada.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/16/jason-isaacs-attempts-to-clarify-controversial-comments-about-star-trek-fans/feed/211STLV17: Photo Wrap-Up – All Good Things…https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/13/stlv17-photo-wrap-up-all-good-things/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/13/stlv17-photo-wrap-up-all-good-things/#commentsMon, 14 Aug 2017 02:27:29 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=50177Star Trek Las Vegas wrapped up last weekend. TrekMovie dedicated full team coverage to the event, producing hundreds of tweets during the event and over a dozen articles during and after with all the big news, interviews, and more. We also just posted our Shuttle Pod podcast wrap-up. Before we move on to resume our regular coverage, we have one more story for you: some of the best of our remaining pictures of Star Trek celebrities and from around the con.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/13/stlv17-photo-wrap-up-all-good-things/feed/4STLV17: William Shatner Dismisses Proposed ‘Star Trek’ 2009 Scene & Explains Kirk’s ‘Look Of Eagles’https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/13/stlv17-william-shatner-dismisses-his-proposed-star-trek-2009-scene-explains-kirk-acting-process/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/13/stlv17-william-shatner-dismisses-his-proposed-star-trek-2009-scene-explains-kirk-acting-process/#commentsSun, 13 Aug 2017 21:11:52 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=50107It’s time to start winding down our coverage for Star Trek Las Vegas with a report on one of the men that started it all. William Shatner was a highlight of the weekend and kept the close-to-capacity crowd entertained with anecdotes, jokes, and even some philosophical insights. Being Shatner, a good portion of the panel time was devoted to horses, which may be his greatest passion, but there was some good talk of Star Trek too.

William Shatner escorted to the stage at Star Trek Las Vegas 2017

Calls his Star Trek 2009 scene ‘fake news’ (it isn’t)

One of the more interesting exchanges during his Q&A time in Vegas was when a fan started off saying he thought it was a shame Shatner was not in J.J. Abrams’ 2009 Star Trek movie. Shatner emphatically agreed with an “I do too!” The fan apparently came prepared as he then asked Shatner about the scene written for him for the movie (which was exclusively revealed here at TrekMovie in 2009). Bill asked the fan where he saw the scene and the fan replied it was a “reliable source,” to which Shatner replied:

Reliable source? That’s fake news!…But seriously I have heard that story, but it has never been in my consciousness. I am not aware of that at all.

The fan then spent about 45 seconds describing the scene in detail (which involved Leonard Nimoy’s Spock giving Zachary Quinto’s Spock a recording of the original Kirk which would have been played by Shatner) until Bill stopped him and interjected:

That is the stupidest scene I have ever heard of! When I saw Leonard [Nimoy] in the first movie that J.J. [Abrams] made and he went back in time, I said to Leonard “You know you are old when you go back in time and you are still old!”… Those are gratuitous scenes! I want to play something – well the question is “How do you put this 50-year-older captain into that thing?”

William Shatner talking to a fan at Star Trek Las Vegas 2017

While TrekMovie has confirmed that the scene was indeed written for Shatner, one of the reasons it is not in his “consciousness” is that it was only pitched internally to the creative team. The group decided not to include it in the movie and therefore it was never presented to Shatner. Director J.J. Abrams felt at the time Shatner’s Kirk being killed off in Star Trek: Generations created too many complications for bringing him back. Abrams actually spoke about this last year:

In all the years we’ve been working on this, I’ve yet to hear a pitch that didn’t sound too contorted and contrived for an audience to swallow. And I’ve talked to him (Shatner) about it. If Kirk had lived there’d be an answer. But there’s something about his having died that makes it impossible.

Including Shatner would have changed this scene in the 2009 Star Trek movie

Giving Kirk ‘the look of eagles’

Another highlight of Shatner’s time was in response to a question from moderator Scott Mantz on how the actor “nailed” the character of Kirk right from the beginning of Star Trek. Shatner began noting that it was all about his training and specifically his work with the Stratford Festival in Canada, noting:

I was a trained classical actor. And the thing about heroes in Shakespeare is they are known. They are kings. They stand in a certain way. They speak. The phrase I heard was “the look of eagles” so you are always looking either to the horizon to see if the enemy is coming or into the future. There is something about being a hero that puts your shoulders back.

So when I came to Star Trek and I [talked] to [creator] Gene Roddenberry, he said to read the books of Horatio Hornblower and I read them and he was just an ordinary captain, but he had his eye on the horizon. Because in those days you didn’t know if a strange animal would swallow the ship. And Captain Kirk had the same problem [laughs] “I wonder if there is a strange animal that is going to swallow the Enterprise.” So I played it like a classical hero and that gave me a little advantage.

Shatner explains Kirk’s “look of eagles”

Praise for Star Trek’s other Gene

Shatner was also asked about the other Gene who had a major role in the original Star Trek, writer and producer Gene Coon. He was quick to note his admiration:

[Gene Coon] was a marine. He set the style, the laconic English style: “Yes and no, yes sir.” And middle words and not being effusive, but being efficient … he was terrific. I am reminded of [National Security Advisor H.R.] McMaster in the White House. He was a marine. “Yes, sir!” “No, sir!” That is the way the military works, you do your job and get going. And if I say to Sulu, “Turn left” you turn left! No, right! … can never remember which is starboard and port.

Shatner had high praise for Gene L. Coon

Waxing philosophically on death and life

With a William Shatner panel you never know where it will go, and in Vegas things turned somewhat serious. While discussing his acting process Bill then went on a tangent that showed how he is contemplating his own mortality:

Life is a process of learning. But when you die do you finally know and then you are dead? You will say “Oh, that’s …”[feigns death]…The corollary of all that is you don’t know anything. You go through life and you know two and two and a little bit about politics, but you don’t really know anything. Nobody knows anything. I have talked to astrophysicists and they are all guessing…I am so wary of death. I think it it was George Burns who said “I can’t die, I’m booked.” And I’m booked.

Later in the program in response to a fan asking what advice he would give his younger self, Bill again got philosophical:

I’ve lived all these years, and I wish I could sum up “well this is what the truth is.” There is no truth. Life goes on and then it ends and there is nothing you can do about it. You can struggle to try to perfect yourself and do better what you work is or try and lead a full life so you are giving as well as taking. You do all those things, but in the end the sweep of history takes you. Life takes you on its own flood plains and you don’t really have any control, so relax! Enjoy the journey because the ending you don’t want to get to. So keep your head above the water and look around you and realize you’re surviving and it’s going to be alright, no matter what happens, it’s going to be alright.

William Shatner gets philosophical at Star Trek Las Vegas 2017

Announces (possibly Star Trek) VR project

Of course Shatner will never stop working and during his time on stage he discussed a number of upcoming projects. This included a cryptic mention of something to do with VR that may be related to Star Trek:

I am going to be doing a big thing with virtual reality. It is going to be stunning and its new and nobody has done it yet. That’s how I can appear in a Star Trek movie.

Other projects he noted:

Just got back from filming second season of the NBC series Better Late Than Never which involved visiting 60 cities in 5 countries in 40 days.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/13/stlv17-william-shatner-dismisses-his-proposed-star-trek-2009-scene-explains-kirk-acting-process/feed/79STLV17: Star Trek Vets Share Their Thoughts And Advice For ‘Star Trek: Discovery’https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/10/stlv17-star-trek-vets-share-their-thoughts-and-advice-for-star-trek-discovery/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/10/stlv17-star-trek-vets-share-their-thoughts-and-advice-for-star-trek-discovery/#commentsThu, 10 Aug 2017 18:00:15 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=49863Star Trek Las Vegas kicked off with a series of panels for Star Trek: Discovery, but for the rest of the con, the new show continued to come up in conversation, brought up by either other Star Trek celebrities and writers, or fans. We have compiled some of the highlights of the Discovery discussions beyond the specific Discovery-themed panels.

Karl Urban sees J.J. Abrams’ influence in Discovery

On Sunday, the subject of Discovery was brought up to Karl Urban (Dr. McCoy in the Kelvin Timeline movies) and the actor showed his inner fanboy, reacting with enthusiasm and noting he saw something familiar about the show:

How excited are you guys about [Discovery]! How cool is that. I cannot wait for that show. The trailer looks phenomenal. It sort of visually taken the energy that J.J. [Abrams] infused the new Star Trek films with and squished them into television, which I love.

Karl Urban is excited for Star Trek: Discovery

TNG crew hopes for the best, offers advice to new Discovery cast

During the Friday night 30th anniversary panel for Star Trek: The Next Generation, a fan asked the assembled cast if any of them would want to do a guest spot. Here is the exchange that followed:

Brent Spiner: A guest shot? I don’t know about that. I am very optimistic about this show. I am very hopeful that it is going to be fantastic. I hope it continues this wonderful epic journey that star trek has been on and I feel it probably will. I don’t know that I need to be a part of it necessarily but I encourage them and hope for the best.

Gates McFadden: Amen

Patrick Stewart: Is the new series set in the future, if we take The Next Generation as the present?

Brent: Past

Patrick: So, it’s a prequel.

Gates: You would have to have hair.

Patrick Stewart’s co-stars have advice, he is still a bit unclear on what Star Trek: Discovery is

During the same panel another question came from the audience asking if the TNG cast had any advice for the new Discovery cast, and the responses were very practical:

Dorn: I work with quite a few actors who have been in the business a long time and the one thing that they always say is that they didn’t appreciate what they had at the time until much much later. I would say definitely anybody who is starting out to really appreciate where you are and what happening. You are extremely fortunate.

McFadden likes Discovery‘s character focus

During a separate TNG panel with just Gates McFadden and Denise Crosby, the subject came up again, and McFadden had more to say about the show:

I am really excited. I think it is a great cast. I love the way they cast it. I have no idea what it is. I know there is going to be a spaceship and a starfield. But I am very excited. I think it is cool they are going to focus on one person’s point of view much more. I think that makes sense for the kind of TV we are seeing right now. It is letting you get another insight into this whole journey in space and I think it is quite different

Gates McFadden likes what she hears about Discovery

Burton jealous of Frakes directing Discovery

As we have reported, Jonathan Frakes (who had to cancel Star Trek Las Vegas due to a work conflict and problem with his flight) directed an episode of Discovery. During a Q&A on Saturday with LeVar Burton and Brent Spiner, Burton was asked why he hasn’t been asked to direct as well. Burton hung his head in mock shame and Spiner consoled him….

Brent Spiner: It’ll happen. Sixth season. You’ll be there. Yep.

LeVar Burton: I’m so glad you asked that question (fake tears). I actually have deep love and respect for my friend Jonathan Frakes. And at the same time I hate him.

Robert Duncan McNeill had to turn down Discovery directing gig

On a panel with some of the men of the Star Trek: Voyager cast, Robert Duncan McNeill revealed he almost followed TNG star Jonathan Frakes in directing an episode of Discovery. The former Tom Paris told the crowd:

I don’t know anything about Discovery to be honest. A couple of friends of mine have directed, like Frakes. I hope it is successful. They did ask me for some dates [to direct] but I just wasn’t available. I would love to do it. I hope it is a huge success. It is good for the fans, it is good for the franchise. It is good for the future of Star Trek.

McNeill did note that he had directed an episode of The Orville and he even spoke about how the show is being careful not to be too Star Trek-y (at least from a legal point of view):

I directed one [episode of The Orville]…Everybody’s very cautious of the legalities of a spaceship that looks a lot like other spaceships…

Garrett Wang prefers Orville

During that same Voyager panel, Garrett Wang (Ensign Kim) brought up Discovery, only to note that given a chance he would prefer to do a guest spot on a different show:

I did a role on American Dad for Seth MacFarlane. And the question on if I would be interested in doing Discovery, I would honestly be more interested in guest starring on The Orville than Discovery.

Braga and Bormanis happy to watch spoiler-free Star Trek

During a panel on writing for Star Trek, veteran writer/producers Brannon Braga and Andre Bormanis (who are both currently working on The Orville) were asked about the possibility of writing for Discovery in the future:

Andre Bormanis: The thing that I am most looking forward to about Discovery is that for the first time in literally 25 years, I will be able to watch an episode of Star Trek on television that I have not read the script for already. I am so looking looking forward to seeing it and not knowing what they are going to do. I scrupulously avoid spoilers. I don’t want to know, I want to be surprised. I want to enjoy it and see it with fresh eyes.

Brannon Braga: I couldn’t have answered it better. Perfect.

Brannon Braga and Andre Bormanis ready to watch Star Trek without knowing what is going to happen

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/10/stlv17-star-trek-vets-share-their-thoughts-and-advice-for-star-trek-discovery/feed/34STLV17: Karl Urban Waiting On Paramount Decision For ‘Star Trek 4’ – OK If ‘Beyond’ Is His Last Trekhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/08/06/stlv17-karl-urban-waiting-on-paramount-decision-for-star-trek-4-ok-if-beyond-is-his-last-trek/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/06/stlv17-karl-urban-waiting-on-paramount-decision-for-star-trek-4-ok-if-beyond-is-his-last-trek/#commentsMon, 07 Aug 2017 00:17:38 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=49872The only main cast member from the Kelvin movies at Star Trek Las Vegas this year is Karl Urban, which makes sense as he may be the biggest fan of the cast (although Simon Pegg could possibly challenge him on that). Karl’s time on the stage covered his time with Star Trek and other projects including his upcoming role in Thor: Ragnarok and possibly a new Judge Dredd TV series. In regards to playing Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy he had a lot to say about last summer’s Star Trek Beyond, working with Leonard Nimoy and Anton Yelchin and of course the latest on the possible next feature film.

Karl Urban at Star Trek Las Vegas 2017

Waiting on Paramount – OK if Beyond was his final Trek

On the subject of the next Star Trek feature film, the actor echoed recent statements from co-stars Zachary Quinto and Chris Pine saying he would be “the last to know” what is going on. However, Urban also noted that all of the cast “would love” to return for a fourth Star Trek film. He put the onus on the studio saying:

The ball is in Paramount’s court. There is a new head of Paramount Studios [Jim Gianopulos] – a great guy – and they are just in the process of looking at their slate at what is coming up. So fingers crossed we get to make another one.

But Urban also noted he is ready to let go:

That being said…if [Star Trek] Beyond is the note that we end it on – as sad as that is – I am actually happy with that film.

The actor stated that of the three Star Trek films he has been in, Star Trek Beyond is his favorite. He specifically noted how his character of McCoy was “most developed” in the script for Beyond and he especially liked how the film showed the respect between the characters of McCoy and Spock.

Karl Urban and Zachary Quinto in Star Trek Beyond

Almost didn’t return after Into Darkness

Even though Beyond is his favorite, it apparently almost didn’t include him. Karl was asked by a fan about reports that he almost didn’t return for the follow up to Star Trek Into Darkness, which he confirmed:

There is some truth to the story. Firstly, I was a little disappointed with the lack of development with McCoy in [Star Trek Into Darkness]. So it was that. Even though I had an amazing experience working with J.J. [Abrams] and the cast, at the end of the day I didn’t have much to do. So when they came to me with the offer for [Star Trek Beyond] I was literally in the final stages of negotiating another film.

Of course the development of the follow up film to Into Darkness was tumultuous with Roberto Orci’s original script and deal to direct the being scrapped by Paramount shortly before pre-production was set to start. Director Justin Lin was brought in and a new script to be written by Simon Pegg and Doug Jung was commissioned. Urban noted the process was “kind of rushed and kind of late” and without a script it was difficult for him to agree to sign on. In the end it was Lin who was able to convince him to do the movie.

They were basically asking me to take a leap of faith with them and I was unsure. I knew that if I didn’t do it I would regret it. As I said before, it’s like family with those guys and it’s so much fun. It was really Justin Lin. We got on the phone and even though I couldn’t read a script he told me the story and when he explained the situation of Bones and Spock being shot out of the turbolift into space and crash landing on a planet and being marooned together I was like “In! I am in in a big way!”

It was sort of me letting them know I expected a somewhat higher caliber of contribution for the character of McCoy. And it prompted them to develop it more and I certainly had a great ally in [co-star and Beyond co-screenwriter] Simon Pegg.

Karl Urban in Star Trek Into Darkness

Sees Kirk/Spock/McCoy relationship at heart of Star Trek

Urban then talked about how he saw the character of McCoy:

I grew up watching [Star Trek] The Original Series, and I always loved how that triumvirate worked together and essentially what [Star Trek creator Gene] Roddenberry did was split Kirk’s personality into three. He would have the two aspects of his brain argue out the dilemma of the week. Obviously with Spock having the cold, hard, rational, scientific, logical perspective. And with McCoy being passionate, altruistic, and human. And Kirk takes the best of both arguments and making a decision and proceeding with that. That was really the core of the show.

He then drew a comparison to how that triumvirate worked in the new films:

For the reboot, Spock became a lot more contemporary where he was a little bit more in touch with his emotions and a little bit more emotional. So it made that argument somewhat more difficult to play. That is sort of why I was appreciative of Star Trek Beyond and how we actually got to explore that together and some great interactions.

Making Leonard Nimoy cry

Prompted by a fan question about not being able to meet the original Dr. McCoy, Urban noted that it was something that he did feel he missed out on, but he has received good feedback from many who did know the late DeForest Kelley. He retold a specific story about the late Leonard Nimoy, conveyed by his wife Susan:

After we shot [Star Trek (2009)] and as it was being released, William Shatner had a charity event and a whole bunch of us went along and Leonard and his wife Susan went too. And I was walking ahead and I hear “Hey Karl,” and I turn around and it was Susan and she pulls me back and says “Karl, I just wanted you to know that when Leonard watched the movie the other night when you came on screen he cried.” What it was is that the work that I had done reminded him of his dear friend and to me that was the greatest nod of appreciation that I have ever had to know that I was on the right track.

Karl Urban at Star Trek Las Vegas 2017

Promoting Beyond after Yelchin’s death was ‘toughest thing’

Another fan question was about working with the Anton Yelchin who played Chekov in three movies before being killed in a tragic accident last year. Urban started off seemingly echoing the sentiments of producer J.J. Abrams that they will not recast the role saying:

Anton was such a beautiful man. He is irreplaceable – irreplaceable.

The actor then recalled what it was like watching Yelchin grow up working on the Star Trek films:

When I met Anton he was literally just a kid. He had his mom on set on the first movie and I remember them arguing with each other in Russian with lots of hand gestures. And then through the course of the films he got older but he was still fundamentally a kid at heart. He was the smartest guy in the room but you wouldn’t know it.

He also said it was difficult for the cast to go on a promotional tour so soon after Yelchin’s death:

We were obviously devastated at his loss, absolutely devastated. It was brutal. And to literally four weeks after we lost him to gout out there and promote Beyond was the toughest thing we ever had to do.

Anton Yelchin in Star Trek Beyond

Talks Thor: Ragnarok + ready for Judge Dredd TV

Urban also talked about his other projects past and future. With regards to the next big Marvel movie Thor: Ragnarok (coming in November) he said he didn’t have any idea what the movie was going to be like except it is “going to be good.” He was especially impressed with director Taika Waititi. Urban did give a description of his role as Scourge:

My character is operating the Bifrost device and suddenly Cate Blanchett walks through the Bifrost and I very astutely realized I either joined her or die. So my character is a survivalist. The journey of Scourge is really “OK, now you made a pact with the devil and it comes with a price.” That price is constantly upped through the movie and that is his journey.

The actor also was asked about his role in the 2012 film Judge Dredd. As a fan of the comics Urban told the crowd one of his stipulations for taking the part was sticking to the character’s roots and never having Dredd take of his helmet. He also noted that he is possibly going to return to the role for the television series currently in development:

I am in discussions with them about that. I told them that if they write the material and give Dredd something to do and give him a function, I will be there. I would love to.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/06/stlv17-karl-urban-waiting-on-paramount-decision-for-star-trek-4-ok-if-beyond-is-his-last-trek/feed/80STLV17: Marina Sirtis Says Paramount Threatened To Replace Her With Jeri Ryan For ‘Star Trek: Nemesis’https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/05/stlv17-marina-sirtis-says-paramount-threatened-to-replace-her-with-jeri-ryan-for-star-trek-nemesis/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/05/stlv17-marina-sirtis-says-paramount-threatened-to-replace-her-with-jeri-ryan-for-star-trek-nemesis/#commentsSun, 06 Aug 2017 04:53:16 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=49864Friday night at Star Trek Las Vegas ended with a 90-minute reunion event for the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation. The entertaining evening mostly showed this cast still has great chemistry as they jovially shared stories of hijinks on the set, such as comparing who stole what when the series ended (Patrick Stewart took a combadge, Marina Sirtis took home a director’s chair and three costumes).

Marina Sirtis and Michael Dorn at Star Trek Las Vegas 2017

One moment that stood was out when a fan asked a question to the women in the group about why they have talked about having difficult contract negotiations when you don’t hear the men in the cast make the same complaint. Marina Sirtis was quick to respond saying “Women are paid less than men in Hollywood, like everywhere else.” The actress then recalled a story she says she has never spoken about before:

When I was negotiating for [Star Trek:] Nemesis they literally threatened to fire me and recast Troi, well not actually recast, but they said “We are going to fire you and hire Jeri Ryan (Seven of Nine from Star Trek Voyager).” And I said “Well Jeri Ryan won’t do it for that money, that is for sure.”

Nemesis offer previously confirmed by Ryan

While Sirtis noted this is the first time she has talked about this, it isn’t the first time the subject has come up. In 2011 TrekMovie reported on Jeri Ryan revealing she had turned down an offer to be in Nemesis from producer Rick Berman. At the time it wasn’t clear if the offer was just a cameo as the final film did include a cameo from Ryan’s Voyager co-star Kate Mulgrew.

The call [from Paramount] came and they said “Put Jeri Ryan in the movie,” and I’m like “Okay… in what way are you going to put Jeri Ryan in this movie?” “Well, we’re going to replace one of the characters with Seven”…which makes absolutely no sense.

But at the time it wasn’t clear who it was Berman and Paramount had in mind to replace or why. Now with Sirtis’ comment it appears to be related to her contract negotiations. And it may be that Ryan’s reluctance to do it removed Paramount’s leverage and obviously Sirtis did eventually sign on for what was the fourth and final film for the TNG cast.

And as both Sirtis and Ryan noted, swapping actresses would not have been a simple task. Star Trek: Voyager had just gone off the air in mid-2001 as Nemesis was in development so Seven was at least back in the right quadrant of space, but she had no relationship with the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise-E. The change would have required significant changes to script, notably the opening wedding scene with Sirtis’ playing the bride. There was also a substantial subplot involving Troi’s psychic connection to the Reman Viceroy (Ron Perlman).

Publicity photo for Star Trek Nemesis (2002)

Sirtis and Stewart decry pay inequity

Sirtis went on to talk more about her problems with Paramount:

Women are always paid less and the negotiations are always uglier because there is some kind of feeling that we don’t deserve the same money as the boys. It was always ugly. I quit smoking for six years but what got me started again was contract negotiations with Paramount. That is how bad it was.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/05/stlv17-marina-sirtis-says-paramount-threatened-to-replace-her-with-jeri-ryan-for-star-trek-nemesis/feed/121STLV17: Patrick Stewart Talks Gene Roddenberry’s “Strong” Opposition Of His Picard Castinghttps://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/stlv17-patrick-stewart-talks-gene-roddenberrys-strong-opposition-of-his-picard-casting/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/stlv17-patrick-stewart-talks-gene-roddenberrys-strong-opposition-of-his-picard-casting/#commentsSat, 05 Aug 2017 06:39:35 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=49819The highlight panel for Friday at Star Trek Las Vegas was Sir Patrick Stewart who said he “loved” coming to the Vegas cons but can’t always do so as work keeps him away. His hour-long panel to a packed house covered a wide range of topics spanning his entire career, but a few moments related to his time starting (and ending) as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation really stood out.

Roddenberry ‘profoundly disagreed’ Stewart was right for Picard

When asked about his relationship with Star Trek: The Next Generation creator Gene Roddenberry, Stewart revealed:

Gene and I did not have a close relationship. We had a respectful relationship. Gene had very strongly felt that I was wrong for the role…I am told, and I don’t know the details, but there was a lot of warfare that went on in the producers offices about that.

Stewart also recalled how he was originally discovered by producer Robert Justman leading to a less than satisfying first meeting with Roddenberry.

I was invited up to Gene’s house one morning after I had been seen by Robert Justman on the stage at Royce Hall in UCLA. Justman discovered me. Apparently – and his wife claimed this was true – at some point during this scholarly, academic evening he turned to his wife and said “we found the captain.” Gene saw me the next morning and profoundly disagreed.

The actor noted that eventually Roddenberry was “worn down” and convinced to cast him for the role, and he added:

I got the feeling that he was ultimately kind of satisfied with how it turned out.

Gene Roddenberry and Patrick Stewart on the set of Star Trek: The Next Generation

Becoming one with Picard, but mixing the tea

During the Q&A in response to a question about his favorite episode (“The Inner Light”), Sir Patrick opened up about how the line between himself and the character became blurred:

The thing is with Jean-Luc Picard, the longer I played him, the closer and closer I came to him and he came to me. It reached a point where I no longer had to sit in my trailer and think “OK, what did Jean-Luc have for breakfast this morning/” and “How does Jean-Luc feel about Commander Riker?” because I knew. It became ingrained so that my responses and behaviors on the set was one that was internalized. I knew him well. The character and the actor merged so totally so that I could not separate them at all.

However, he didn’t completely become Picard. When asked about his preference for tea he noted that he did differ somewhat with Picard’s favored choice:

Actually I do [like Early Grey]. What I like to do is mix Earl Grey tea with English Breakfast.

Proud to be Picard – but didn’t want it to dominate life

Stewart also talked about life after The Next Generation and how there was a downside to being so associated with the role of Picard (something he has also discussed before). He recalled the story of how it was due to Picard that he originally turned down the role of Professor Charles Xavier for the X-Men franchise:

Some of you may not like the sound of this but you have to see it from my point of view. It was a handful of years after Star Trek and the movies – and I was already experiencing that not everything that came out of my world of Captain Picard was good. I found that competing for other roles was challenging…I realized I had a little bit of a battle to fight to persuade people that I was not just Jean Luc-Picard. I am very proud to be Jean-Luc Picard, but I certainly didn’t need to have it dominate my life. So I said no. I am already struggling with one franchise, why would I take on a second franchise.

However, due to director Bryan Singer being a “smooth-talking bastard,” Stewart was persuaded to take on the role, which he has played in multiple films including this year’s Logan.

Patrick Stewart in Logan

Never was to play Shinzon

During the Q&A portion a fan asked Stewart about a rumor that he was originally supposed to play the Picard clone Shinzon in the film Star Trek: Nemesis (in addition to playing Capt. Picard). Stewart quickly dispelled the notion:

I have never heard that before. It is news to me. [Star Trek: Nemesis producer] Rick Berman and I did discuss the casting of Shinzon. And hasn’t [Tom Hardy, the actor cast as Shinzon] done really well?…It would have been interesting but there would have been a problem that he was meant to be many years younger than me and I don’t know how we could have done that. It would have been difficult. It is an interesting concept, but I don’t think I would have been comfortable with it.

Tom Hardy and Patrick Stewart in Star Trek: Nemesis

Picard Manuever

One last thing, at one point during the panel Sir Patrick delighted the crowd with a demonstration of the famed Picard Maneuver. We caught the moment during our live-tweeting.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/stlv17-patrick-stewart-talks-gene-roddenberrys-strong-opposition-of-his-picard-casting/feed/17STLV17: Denise Crosby Has A Plan For ‘Trekkies 3’https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/stlv17-denise-crosby-has-a-plan-for-trekkies-3/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/stlv17-denise-crosby-has-a-plan-for-trekkies-3/#commentsSat, 05 Aug 2017 04:24:19 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=49812At Star Trek Las Vegas the focus of much of Friday was a series of panels with stars from Star Trek: The Next Generation, including one with Gates McFadden (Dr. Crusher) and Denise Crosby (Tasha Yar). One bit of info that came out of that panel was discussion of the third entry in the series of Trekkies documentaries about Star Trek fandom co-produced and starring Crosby.

The first Trekkies doc came out in 1999 and Trekkies 2 followed in 2003. Since then she has stated at events and in interviews she would like to make a third, and on stage in Vegas today she sounded even more optimistic about it:

I have an idea. My partner and I Roger Nygard have a plan. It is at least a year away.

She also offered some details on what she would like to see in a Trekkies 3:

We definitely like to go to some places in the world where we haven’t been. I think also fandom has changed quite a bit since I first did Trekkies. So I want to explore the changes in attitude and the changes in all of that has taken place. And check in with all off J.J. Abrams crew and the Discovery crew and go back and see my dentist in Florida.

Crosby didn’t go into details on if there were any talks underway with CBS or Paramount who would have to be involved in any new film. Paramount released the previous two documentaries. She did implore the audience to “keep good positive thoughts” for a Trekkies 3.

Crosby talks about her plan for Trekkies 3

A lot to cover

Crosby is correct that a lot has happened since Trekkies 2 came out 14 years ago, not just in the world of Star Trek and Trek fandom but with documentaries. There are fewer theatrical releases, especially from Paramount Pictures. It seems more likely that any new documentary would be released on TV or possibly through a streaming service. It even wouldn’t be surprising if Crosby looked to crowdfunding, like what was done successfully for the upcoming What We Left Behind doc on Deep Space Nine. For now, we will continue to wait and see.

And if the Trekkies documentaries are from before your time, here are the trailers for both.

TrekMovie will have more coverage of the Star Trek: The Next Generation panels from Friday and more coming soon from Star Trek Las Vegas.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/stlv17-denise-crosby-has-a-plan-for-trekkies-3/feed/13William Shatner Urges Star Trek Cruise To Drop Swimming With Dolphins – Company Consideringhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/william-shatner-urges-star-trek-cruise-to-drop-swimming-with-dolphins-company-considering/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/william-shatner-urges-star-trek-cruise-to-drop-swimming-with-dolphins-company-considering/#commentsFri, 04 Aug 2017 20:49:25 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=49797January of this year was the launch of the first official Star Trek: The Cruise which is a floating Star Trek convention that sails around the Caribbean on a cruise ship. Star Trek’s William Shatner was the headliner for the cruise this year. For 2018 there are two more cruises planned, with George Takei as the top billing.

William Shatner greeting passengers as Star Trek The Cruise set sail in January (Photo: Star Trek The Cruise)

The Star Trek cruises are held on board the Norwegian Jade which follows week-long itinerary that begins and ends in Miami with stops in Honduras, Belize and Mexico. The stop in Costa Maya in Mexico includes a celebrity-hosted “Swim with the Dolphins” excursion option.

Shatner’s letter

And it is this excursion option that has William Shatner concerned. In a letter penned to of Norwegian Cruise Line’s CEO Frank J. Del Rio, William Shatner urges the company to stop offering this dolphin swim with their cruises. Here is the letter in full (via PETA):

Dear Mr. Del Rio,

I’m so happy that Star Trek fans have the opportunity to climb aboard Norwegian Jade’s Star Trek: The Cruise and experience their own interstellar voyage of sorts. However, so long as your company offers “swim with dolphins” experiences, what should be a futuristic voyage will be set back light years.

Never before has public opinion leaned so strongly against marine mammal captivity, presumably across all galaxies. Dolphins are highly intelligent, socially complex animals who travel great distances in the wild, often in large family pods. In captivity, they’re confined to pitiful, barren makeshift lagoons, often after being captured from the wild and torn away from their families in violent ways or after being bred into captivity for profit. There’s no justification for condemning animals to a lifetime of suffering in the name of entertainment.

Aboard the USS Enterprise, it was Captain Kirk’s duty “to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations” in order to advance and diversify our own. The exploitation of any species for profit and entertainment would have violated the Prime Directive. I’m urging you to go where compassionate companies—such as TripAdvisor, MasterCard, and more—have gone before by removing “swim with dolphins” encounters from the Star Trek: The Cruise voyage, as well as from all other cruises offered through Norwegian Jade. Surely, Star Trek fans would appreciate the decision to allow dolphins to remain in the wild—and prosper.

Thank you,

William Shatner

Cruise considering request

TrekMovie has reached to Entertainment Cruise Productions who operate Star Trek: The Cruise and owner Michael Lazaroff responded via email saying they are considering the request:

We just received the notice as well, so we are working through its meaning and impact as well.

The event called out, “Swimming with the Dolphins” is a very common excursion offered by cruise lines all over the Caribbean. Our role in Star Trek: The Cruise is that of the producer of the cruise programming, meaning the shows, events, etc. Further, we charter the entire ship so we do have some latitude with respect to which excursions the cruise line will offer our guests. We may request that the cruise line remove “Swimming with the Dolphins” from the choices for our upcoming sailings. Whether we have the right to do so is unclear.

Again, I have never heard of any abuse or endangerment to the dolphins by this program, so we have never faced this decision before. As we learn more, we will decide accordingly.

Star Trek: The Cruise II in 2018 will have two sailings, on January 5th and January 11th of 2018. For more information visit startrekthecruise.com.

Fans on board Norwegian Jade in January 2017 (Photo: Star Trek: The Cruise)

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/04/william-shatner-urges-star-trek-cruise-to-drop-swimming-with-dolphins-company-considering/feed/10Marina Sirtis Back For ‘Young Justice,’ Zoe Saldana Honored Twice, & More Star Trek CelebWatchhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/07/04/marina-sirtis-back-for-young-justice-zoe-saldana-honored-twice-more-star-trek-celebwatch/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/07/04/marina-sirtis-back-for-young-justice-zoe-saldana-honored-twice-more-star-trek-celebwatch/#commentsTue, 04 Jul 2017 22:30:43 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=48647It’s time to catch up on the latest news from some of our favorite Star Trek celebrities. This week we have Marina Sirtis and George Takei lending their voices, Takei’s Broadway play heading to LA, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, Zachary Quinto and Robert Picardo getting some recognition by the Hollywood establishment, Armin Shimerman’s new role at USC and sad news on the passing of Skip Homeier.

Sirtis is a queen again

Marina Sirtis announced on Twitter she would be returning to the revived animated superhero series Young Justice, which was canceled back in 2013. The Star Trek: The Next Generation actress will be reprising the role of Queen Bee for a third season, which will be available on a new DC digital service in 2018.

Queen Bee from Young Justice

Takei bringing Allegiance to LA, voicing new games

At age 80, George Takei is not slowing down. He just wrapped up an extended Broadway engagement starring in Pacific Overtures, and now he’ll headed back to the west coast in 2018 with his musical Allegiance. The East West Players and the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center have announced Takei will star in the Los Angeles premiere of the Broadway musical Allegiance at the JACCC’s Aratani Theatre in Los Angeles from February 21-April 1, 2018. Previews will run from February 21-25, with the opening night performance and reception on February 28.

Lea Solonga and George Takei in Allegiance on Broadway. The show is headed to Los Angeles in 2018

Good news, everyone! Futurama is back with the new mobile game Futurama: Worlds of Tomorrow, with the full cast. Also lending a voice to the new game is George Takei (as himself), as seen in the launch trailer:

Speaking of games, Takei has just been named as a board member for the Hong Kong-based developer Fifth Journey, who make a number of movie tie-ins. They are currently working on a game for the 2016 animated film Kubo and the Two Strings which featured Takei; he’ll be reprising his role for the game.

Zoe Saldana honored with Latino Media Award and a star on the Walk of Fame

At a ceremony in Hollywood last weekend, Star Trek’s new Uhura was honored by the National Association of Latino Independent Producers. Saldana received the Outstanding Achievement in Film award for her roles in Guardians of the Galaxy, Avatar and Star Trek, among others. She gave an emotional acceptance speech on “stressing the importance of surpassing race and ethnicity when it comes to talent,” some of which can be seen in the highlights video below.

Saldana is also being honored by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce; her name is on the list for new stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2018.

Picardo, Cho, Quinto invited into Academy, and Whoopi joins the board

Each year the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences invites new members (who also become Academy Awards voters), and this year a number of Star Trek stars were on the list, including Zachary Quinto (Kelvin movies), John Cho (Kelvin movies) and Robert Picardo (Voyager). Picardo even took to Twitter to joke about it.

Shimerman joins other Trek actors who have made the trek to academia, including Avery Brooks (at Rutgers) and Robert Beltran (at USC’s cross-town rival UCLA).

LeVar reads to you

Many people grew up to Star Trek: The Next Generation’s LeVar Burton reading to them and celebrating books with Reading Rainbow. Now he’s back with a new podcast simply titled LeVar Burton Reads. where he reads short stories. You can listen to the intro promo and first episode below.

Celeb Photo of the Week: Berman’s boys

Today former Star Trek producer Rick Berman shared this photo of himself with John de Lancie, Brent Spiner and Armin Shimerman.

RIP Skip Homeier

The Hollywood Reporter noted that actor Skip Homeier passed away at the age of 86 on June 25. Homeier is known to Star Trek fans for playing Melakon in the TOS episode “Patterns of Force” and Dr. Sevrin in “The Way to Eden.” Homeier’s acting career began in the 1940s and lasted through to the 80s. He was particularly well known for westerns on film and TV including The Gunfighter, The Rifleman, Wagon Train, Bonanza and The Virginian.

Skip Homeier in The Gunfighter and on Star Trek

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/07/04/marina-sirtis-back-for-young-justice-zoe-saldana-honored-twice-more-star-trek-celebwatch/feed/8J.G. Hertzler Runs For Congress, Patrick Stewart Drinks Shoe Champagne And More Star Trek CelebWatchhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/06/12/j-g-hertzler-runs-for-congress-patrick-stewart-drinks-shoe-champagne-and-more-celebwatch/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/06/12/j-g-hertzler-runs-for-congress-patrick-stewart-drinks-shoe-champagne-and-more-celebwatch/#commentsTue, 13 Jun 2017 00:03:16 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=48275J.G. Hertzler, best known to Trek fans for his recurring role as Klingon General Martok from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, has announced he is running for Congress. Hertzler is currently an elected member of the Town Board of Ulysses, N.Y. and hopes to unseat Congressman Tom Reed of New York’s 23rd District. And according to the report from his weekend announcement, the actor is planning on campaigning “in character,” but not as a Klingon:

Hertzler says he’ll run not just as himself, but “in the persona of Mark Twain,” and present his ideas “through the brilliant humorist for all ages.” Twain, born Samuel Clemens, spent much of his life in Elmira, about an hour south of Trumansburg and the Ithaca area. He says his plan is also a tribute to Hal Holbrook, who has portrayed Mark Twain for over 60 years, including at the Clemens Center in Elmira a few years ago. He won a Tony award for his portrayal of Twain fifty years ago, and is said to have portrayed Twain longer than Clemens himself did.

Republican Tom Reed has held the seat since 2012. In 2016 he carried the district with a 15-point margin. Hertzler has filed papers to run as a Democratic, which means he will first have to win the nomination by running in a primary against local teacher Rick Gallant who announced a run in May with the support of local Democratic Party County chairs.

J.G. Hertzler on Ulysses Town Council and as Martok in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Patrick Stewart Drinks Shoe Champagne At Canadian Grand Prix

Sir Patrick Stewart is making news today for his bravery. Over the weekend the Star Trek: The Next Generation star was at the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal where he was conducting the podium interviews after the race. Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo decided to celebrate by drinking some champagne from one of his shoes and then invited Stewart to drink from the other. Amazingly, Sir Pat did. Watch him drink sweaty shoe champagne in the video from Formula 1 below.

Nichelle Nichols To Appear In Downward Dog

ABC has announced that Star Trek’s Nichelle Nichols will be a guest star on their talking-dog sitcom Downward Dog. She will appear in the June 20th episode titled “Old” where she will be playing a local celebrity singer named Deejay Devine.

More Celeb Bits

Star Trek Enterprise’s (and previous Tony-winner) Scott Bakula presented at the 71st Annual Tony Awards at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City last night.

Scott Bakula with Sutton Foster at 2017 Tony Awards (Getty)

The Mummy, directed by Star Trek writer/producer Alex Kurtzman, opened over the weekend to poor reviews and ended being beat at the domestic box office by Wonder Woman (co-starring Star Trek’sChris Pine) in its second weekend. However, internationally The Mummy did relatively well bringing in a total of over $173M for the weekend. The eponymous mummy is played by Sofia Boutella who revealed that when she played Jaylah in Star Trek Beyond she brought a massage table to relax on while her makeup was applied, which she did again for The Mummy (as can be seen in this new Instagram photo she shared over the weekend).

Speaking of Chris Pine, he is getting a lot of good buzz from the highly-rated Wonder Woman, for example: Business Insider declaring the actor is “suddenly at the top of his game.”

And speaking of Sofia Boutella she will be re-uniting with her Beyond co-star Zachary Quinto in the upcoming film Hotel Artemis. Empire reports he and Sofia have joined the cast along with Jodie Foster for Iron Man 3 writer Drew Pearce’s directorial debut in what is described as a near-future thriller.

Star Trek’sZoe Saldanastars in “Free Me,” an emotional new music video from Sia about dealing with HIV.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/06/12/j-g-hertzler-runs-for-congress-patrick-stewart-drinks-shoe-champagne-and-more-celebwatch/feed/16LeVar Burton Reads New Audiobook Of Carl Sagan’s ‘Cosmos’https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/31/levar-burton-reads-new-audiobook-of-carl-sagans-cosmos/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/31/levar-burton-reads-new-audiobook-of-carl-sagans-cosmos/#commentsThu, 01 Jun 2017 05:57:13 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=48114Audible has just released a brand new audiobook version of Carl Sagan’s classic Cosmos: A Personal Voyage. The new unabridged version is read by Star Trek: The Next Generation’s (and Reading Rainbow’s)LeVar Burton.

Sagan’s Cosmos book (a companion to the original TV mini-series) won him a Hugo Award and spent over a year on the New York Times best seller list after its original publication in 1980. It is one of the best-selling science books of all time and – structured like the original TV series – tells the story of the evolution of the cosmos over the last fourteen billion years.

The classic Cosmos mini-series was revived in 2014 by Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane and Star Trek vet Brannon Braga, with astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson as host. This new audiobook includes a new forward by Tyson as well as a new introduction read by MacFarlane. Speaking to NerdistCosmos co-writer and Carl Sagan’s widow Ann Druyan said, “To have Seth MacFarlane or Neil or LeVar Burton whispering in your brain the words of Carl Sagan and in some cases the words we wrote together, that is really cool.”

Audible has also released this behind-the-scenes video featuring Burton discussing and recording the new book.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/31/levar-burton-reads-new-audiobook-of-carl-sagans-cosmos/feed/3Guide To Star Trek Events And Celebrity Appearances in Junehttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/29/guide-to-star-trek-events-and-celebrity-appearances-in-june/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/29/guide-to-star-trek-events-and-celebrity-appearances-in-june/#commentsMon, 29 May 2017 14:00:30 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=48033While the two big events of the summer are San Diego Comic Con in July and Star Trek Las Vegas in August, there is still a lot of con and event activity in June.

FedCon in Bonn, Germany, kicks off this weekend with an almost complete Star Trek: The Next Generation reunion along with a number of Star Trek-related lectures and fan film screenings. In mid June, there’s Awesome Con in Washington DC, where in addition to Garrett Wang and Wil Wheaton there will be Trek-specific panels, including one with Robert Greenberger (author of Star Trek: The Complete Unauthorized History) and a segment called “Future Con,” which will include an appearance by former International Space Station commander (and certified Trekkie) Colonel Chris Hadfield.

June marks the 35th anniversary of Star Trek II and to celebrate there will be three special screening in the Los Angeles area in the coming weeks, two with Q&As with director Nicholas Meyer.

June will also see two of the traveling Star Trek museum exhibitions end (in Germany and Canada), so if you’ve been meaning to catch those, now is the time.

In the coming weeks there are going to be three screenings of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan in the LA area to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the film.

The first is this week on May 31st a the Ahrya Fine Arts Theatre in Beverly Hills, CA. Director Nicholas Meyer will be on hand for a Q&A.

On June 9th Star Trek II will screen at the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica for free preceded by a Star Talk discussion with Neil DeGrasse Tyson. All attendees will also receive a free copy of his latest book. Reserve a spot via EventBrite. (Nicholas Meyer will not be at this event)

On June 13th at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, CA there will be another screening with Meyer, this time joined by Nichelle Nichols, Ike Eisenmann (Peter Preston), and Alan Howarth (sound effects technician TMP-TUC). The Chinese Theatre screening is actually a “Khan” double bill starting off with the Star Trek episode “Space Seed.”

Star Trek: The Exhibition in Germany Through June 18

The traveling exhibition of authentic Star Trek artifacts and information has been at the Dornier Museum in Friedrichshafen , Germany since October but wraps up on June 18th. More info at dorniermuseum.de.

June 24 & 25: Star Trek Artists Weekend At Set Tour In NY

The Star Trek Original Series Set Tour in Ticonderoga, NY (former home of Star Trek: New Voyages/Phase II sets) is holding a special “Star Trek Artists Weekend” June 24th and 25th. Legendary Star Trek designers Michael Okuda, Denise Okuda and Doug Drexler will guide visitors through the sets “for the ultimate insider weekend.” More information and tickets are available at the official tour site.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/29/guide-to-star-trek-events-and-celebrity-appearances-in-june/feed/9Watch George Takei Denounce Trolls Attacking ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Diversityhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/28/watch-george-takei-denounce-trolls-attacking-star-trek-discovery-diversity/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/28/watch-george-takei-denounce-trolls-attacking-star-trek-discovery-diversity/#commentsSun, 28 May 2017 23:32:15 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=48037When the new Star Trek: Discoverytrailer came out, we got the usual barrage of excitement, analysis, and critiques, covering everything from uniforms to Klingon ridges. The trailer also made it clear that the new series will be rich in diversity, and while the fans went on discussing time period and production design, a handful of vitriolic, anti-diversity trolls on Twitter and YouTube have caught the attention of the media. While you won’t find these opinions on most Trek sites and forums, the press has pounced on them, even though it’s highly likely that most of these comments aren’t even coming from fans.

This morning MSNBC’s AM Joy picked up on the story, and they brought on Star Trek’s George Takei to address it. The original Sulu correctly identified these critics not as fans but as trolls who don’t understand Star Trek history. He specifically talked about how diversity has always been part of Star Trek, noting:

We had a guiding acronym – IDIC – which stood for infinite diversity in infinite combinations. And we boldly went where we hadn’t gone before because we were curious about what is out there. And when you go out into space you are going to have even greater diversity. Now these so-called trolls haven’t seen a single episode of the new series, because it hasn’t even aired…and they don’t know the history of Star Trek … Gene Roddenberry created this with the idea of finding strength in our diversity. And the delight of life in diversity. So they don’t know what they are talking about.

Chase Masterson’s ‘Swear Trek’ message

Another Star Trek star has weighed on on this issue. Chase Masterson (Leeta from Deep Space Nine) hooked up with the popular (and profane) parody Twitter Account @swear_trek to redub a DS9 scene with message to diversity critics. Warning: Chase uses some very colorful language.

“Gene’s whole vision was that minorities weren’t on set because we were minorities, we were on set because in the future our diverse world would all be working together as equals,” Nichols said. “I understand that everyone needs to see role models that can inspire them and talk to them and represent them, but I believe we need to move to a future that transcends race, gender, or anything else. We’re all people.”

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/28/watch-george-takei-denounce-trolls-attacking-star-trek-discovery-diversity/feed/211William Shatner Weighs In On ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ And Canonhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/26/william-shatner-weighs-in-on-star-trek-discovery-and-canon/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/26/william-shatner-weighs-in-on-star-trek-discovery-and-canon/#commentsFri, 26 May 2017 18:20:54 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=48025Star Trek’s original captain William Shatner is well known for being prolific on Twitter, but every once in a while he dives into the world of Reddit (and TrekMovie has verified the account is authentic). In the last couple of weeks he posted there to promote the online auction of various bits of Hollywood memorabilia for his upcoming Hollywood Charity Horse Show. While he was there, he got engaged in some of the discussions, and last night he commented on one of the many about Star Trek: Discovery in the r/startrek subreddit. In a thread called “It’s disgusting how the new Trek doesn’t respect its history” (which was actually a bit of a parody thread mocking those who are pre-judging the show), Bill weighed in:

I just love how frazzled some of you get about canon. It’s a show and they are doing a prequel to something that was made 50 years ago. Star Trek was always more about the stories and messaging than the look. If they screw that up; roast em alive and kick em in the you know what! If they don’t; then enjoy it. Kirk out!

Bill’s comment to nitpicking fans about Star Trek being “something that was made 50 years ago” is reminiscent of his classic Saturday Night Live“Get a Life!” sketch from 1986.

Shatner talks Kirk’s death scene and waiting for the sequel

Earlier this week William Shatner was a guest on the Hallmark Channel show Home & Family and during the interview Bill recounted an experience of a horse falling on him and injuring his leg and how he struggled to get up after the accident, saying he used the experience as inspiration for the death scene in Star Trek: Generations:

That getting up and falling down, when it came to play the time of Captain Kirk dying I thought “shot in the back, stand up, fall down, stand up, fall down. Struggleto live, and then let go. And then wait for the sequel [laughs]

He also talks about how he gave horse riding advice to Sir Patrick Stewart when shooting Generations, telling him to wear women’s nylons to avoid chaffing. Bill also participated in a DIY segment where they built a home-made Star Trek captains chair. During the segment Shatner talked about when he was working on the original Star Trek the buttons on his chair always came off when he pressed them. Watch the full episode online.

Bill on getting his start with Star Trek and how Star Wars brought Trek back in the 70s

Another stop on his media tour promoting his new book “Spirt of the Horse” was DirecTV’s Rich Eisen Show where Bill talked about getting the call to be on Star Trek and how surprised he was that the franchise came back in the 70s thanks to a popular gag reel. He also attributed to the success of Star Wars to Paramount giving a green light to Star Trek: The Motion Picture. You can watch that full interview below.

Hollywood Charity Horse Show

The Hollywood Charity Horse Show is next weekend on June 3rd. The dinner is sold out but fans the Arena Show is free and open to the public. The event is at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center in Burbank, CA and starts at 5:30. For more info visit HorseShow.org. You can also help the charity and get some cool memorabilia in his Online Silent Auction.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/26/william-shatner-weighs-in-on-star-trek-discovery-and-canon/feed/83Jason Isaacs “Explains” Absence from ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Trailer; LeVar Burton Weighs Inhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/21/jason-isaacs-explains-absence-from-star-trek-discovery-trailer-levar-burton-weighs-in/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/21/jason-isaacs-explains-absence-from-star-trek-discovery-trailer-levar-burton-weighs-in/#commentsSun, 21 May 2017 18:10:54 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47923Jason Isaacs had a cheeky tweet for folks wondering why he wasn’t in the recent Discovery first look trailer. The trailer, released Wednesday, appears to only include early footage, focusing on the crew of the U.S.S. Shenzhou. CBS has yet to reveal the U.S.S. Discovery.

Production continues in Toronto

Supervising producer Ted Sullivan returned to Toronto on Thursday and was back on set to oversee the another episode by Friday. As we previously reported, the Discovery production rotates in writer-producers to oversee specific episodes. Ted was last in Toronto in late March and early April. After joking about the return of his little traveling companion ‘Jason Gorn,’ Sullivan praised the work of Discovery‘s lead Sonequa Martin-Green.

On Saturday night, Anthony Rapp — who plays U.S.S. Discovery science officer Lt. Stamets — tweeted this photo of him with some of his castmates at dinner. Included in the photo were Jason Isaacs (Capt. Lorca of the U.S.S. Discovery), Shazad Latif (Lt. Tyler) and Klingon Warrior Mary Chieffo, indicating the Klingon storyline apparent in the recently released trailer continues past the pilot.

In our last update we reported that actor Rainn Wilson (who is playing iconic space rogue Harry Mudd) had read (and loved) the script for his episode. On this past Monday he tweeted that he was on his way up to Canada, presumably to shoot his scenes.

The pilot on my Air Canada flight kept pronouncing it “turblelence” which made me feel both curious & sad in equal measure.

On Thursday Wilson sent out another tweet from the Toronto airport so it may be that he has already wrapped that episode.

Burton gives his thoughts on Discovery trailer

The first Trek acting vet to to talk about the new Discovery trailer is LeVar Burton (TNG’s Geordi LaForge). In an interview with the Detroit Free Press at the Motor City Comic Con in Detroit, Burton said:

Looks beautiful… And I love the fact that, again, true to the values of Star Trek, that, at least from what I’ve seen on the clip, that the command structure is women of color

You can watch the interview with Burton in this video (Note: Detroit Free Press caption incorrectly identifies Burton from “Star Trek: Enterprise” not “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”).

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/21/jason-isaacs-explains-absence-from-star-trek-discovery-trailer-levar-burton-weighs-in/feed/61Jason Isaacs: Star Trek: Discovery Is ‘New, Yet Familiar’https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/16/jason-isaacs-star-trek-discovery-is-new-yet-familiar/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/16/jason-isaacs-star-trek-discovery-is-new-yet-familiar/#commentsTue, 16 May 2017 17:08:54 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47670For the first time since being cast as Captain Lorca of the U.S.S. Discovery, Jason Isaacs is talking about Star Trek: Discovery. In an interview with GoldDerby focusing primarily on his role as the bad guy in the Netflix series The OA, Isaacs was also asked about Discovery. After first making some jokes about the severity of his non-disclosure agreement, he said there were a few things he could confirm:

I can tell you I have started shooting and it is absurdly cool. I feel like a five-year-old when I say those known words from the past that you have seen in shows. Anything I tell you would just ruin it for you.

The actor also offered this tiny tidbit describing the show:

I think it’s out in the public domain that it is Star Trek, but not as we know it. They’ve changed a bunch of stuff in it. It’s a new and yet familiar experience.

Appreciating work of Shatner and Nimoy

Isaacs did give some background on his familiarity with Star Trek, saying he watched it with his family growing up and he has been re-watching it lately, which has given him a renewed appreciation for the actors on the original show:

Watching William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy, I realized what geniuses they were and how they elevated the prosaic into the epic. And also, they had no money and no budget, so each week was this stunning morality play that they made somehow, universal. William Shatner could imbue the most prosaic lines with Shakespearean high stakes. It’s not that easy. I’m finding it a challenge. There are big boots to walk in, but I am doing my best.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/16/jason-isaacs-star-trek-discovery-is-new-yet-familiar/feed/57Gates McFadden: Some Star Trek: TNG Producers Weren’t Receptive To Ideas From Women, Early Onhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/13/gates-mcfadden-star-trek-tng-producers-werent-receptive-to-ideas-from-women/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/13/gates-mcfadden-star-trek-tng-producers-werent-receptive-to-ideas-from-women/#commentsSun, 14 May 2017 01:51:43 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47650In a new podcast interview with the CBC from Ottawa Comic Con, Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Gates McFadden said she felt producers on the show were not receptive to her ideas for her character, Dr. Beverly Crusher. She offered up a specific example involving creator Gene Roddenberry:

Sometime really early on I brought the book Awakenings to Gene [Roddenberry] and I said this would be an amazing episode … I had always loved Dr. Oliver Sacks’ writing and I found it fascinating and I really wanted my character to be a neurologist, with working with the brain and all of that. And I had to talked to him about it and gave him the book and then nothing happened and a couple of years later the movie came out. Maybe he had done something about it, but we never had a discussion about it.

McFadden went on to say that the fact that she’s a woman was likely a big part of the reason TNG producers weren’t receptive to her:

I didn’t feel particularly that they were receptive to a female walking in and telling them about a great script idea. That was number one. Maybe I am wrong. A woman can’t just walk into the producer’s office and throw her feet up on the couch and say “hey let’s just hang a minute” and “how about this?” Maybe you can now, but you sure couldn’t then. It would have seemed like a come-on or something. I was trying to navigate stuff and I was always was somebody filled with ideas.

Gates McFadden’s return to Star Trek: The Next Generation in the first episode of Season 3

During the same podcast, McFadden was candid when asked if her outspokenness in the press during the first season of the show led to her being fired before season two:

I think that totally contributed to my being let go the second season … I was from a background where you were encouraged to speak up with your ideas. It was about being passionate about what you were doing, it wasn’t about criticizing what you were doing … I think I lacked an awareness of how it could come off in a different way. It could be threatening to somebody.

You can listen to the full podcast below, where she talks about trying to inject some humor into Beverly Crusher, how she felt left out of the onscreen mentoring of Wesley Crusher, and the rumors that Picard was possibly Wesley’s real father, among other topics.

More from McFadden as she defends Wesley: “I love my space son!”

Yesterday McFadden held a Q&A at Ottawa Comic Con with Star Trek: Enterprise‘s John Billingsley. During the event she was asked a question about acting as a mother and she used the opportunity to give a strong rebuke to critics of Wesley Crusher, noting, “I raised that boy!” (Video courtesy of Matthew Jason Dever.)

McFadden will be at Ottawa Comic Con all weekend, where she’ll be available for photos and autographs. More details at ottawacomiccon.com.

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https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/13/gates-mcfadden-star-trek-tng-producers-werent-receptive-to-ideas-from-women/feed/49Interview: Robert Beltran On “The Circuit” And Working In The Star Trek: Voyager ‘Factory’https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/12/interview-robert-beltran-on-the-circuit-and-working-in-the-star-trek-voyager-factory/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/12/interview-robert-beltran-on-the-circuit-and-working-in-the-star-trek-voyager-factory/#commentsFri, 12 May 2017 21:24:22 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47639A number of Star Trek and sci-fi vets from in front and behind the camera have come together to make a new sci-fi anthology series called The Circuit, from executive producer Manu Intiraymi (Icheb on Star Trek: Voyager). The project is currently seeking crowdfunding for a pilot via Kickstarter with a plan to eventually make a season of ten episodes telling different stories with different sub-genres along the lines of Black Mirror, The Twilight Zone and Amazing Stories. Star Trek luminaries who are attached include Walter Koenig (TOS), Terry Farrell (DS9), Armin Shimerman (DS9), Ethan Phillips (VOY), Robert Picardo (VOY) and others.

One of those others is Star Trek: Voyager’s Robert Beltran. TrekMovie talked to the actor about The Circuit and his seven years playing First Officer Chakotay on the USS Voyager.

Robert Beltran is one of many Trek vets who are attached to The Circuit

Besides your connection to Manu, what is it that attracted you to The Circuit? Do you have an interest in sci-fi anthology types of shows?

No. The only the thing that attracted to me to it is that Manu and I are friends and he asked me to be involved. He told me what it would be about and so I like working with friends. I like working with people I know and trust. That is why I did Renegades. That is why The Circuit is something I am willing to work on, because I like the people involved.

As far as any kind of genre I am attracted to, I am attracted to a good script. Even if it is about gorillas in space, I don’t really care. As long as it has a good story, it’s compelling, it’s got something for me that is interesting, that’s the only criteria.

I know they are still working on stories and scripts and each episode is going to be different. Do you know and can you talk much about which one you will be doing?

I have no idea. Manu has thrown a couple of things at me which he says are not written in stone just to get my reaction on what my thoughts might be. He has even asked me to bring some story possibilities so maybe I will do that.

I know you recently directed a play with the Angel City Theater Ensemble; with The Circuit do you think you might be doing writing as you mention or directing in addition to acting?

Manu mentioned something about possibly directing one of the episodes. But everything is merely conjecture and possibility into the future because they have to raise the money. It is not easy to raise the money. If they can only do one episode, it probably won’t be me who is going to direct it, and it may not be me on the next four or five because I think he has commitments to other directors. Mine would be way down the line. It would be something that I would be interested in, but it is not something that is keeping me up at night awaiting jubilation, because it may never come.

Robert Beltran directing actress Rachel Gonzalez for Mariela in the Desert at Casa 0101 Theater

Fighting and pitching on Voyager

Speaking of directing, was that something you ever pursued on Voyager? I know a lot of the other cast members spent time behind the camera.

At one point I was kind of interested until I realized what it would entail. I liked going to the meetings and working with the editors, you learn a lot from seeing how the editors worked. Then I realized I wasn’t that interested in directing an episode because it is very time-consuming for at least a couple of months where you are going to work doing your acting job and then also doing the editing on the episode you directed. I decided I wanted to take full advantage of the time that I had free.

But, you weren’t shy about pitching ideas to writers and producers, like with “The Fight.” I understand that one started with you?

Actually the boxing episode, there was Ken [Biller], Brannon [Braga] and Joe [Menosky], we were having dinner and they were asking me what I would like to do and with holodeck with Chakotay. And I gave them some ideas and they said, “Nah, nah, we already did this or that on Next Generation.” And then they said, “What about a boxing episode?” And I said, “I like boxing, OK, let’s do that. Just give me about two months heads up so I can get in really good shape, so I can look like a real boxer.” And they said “Okay, we will do that.” But then one day I get a call saying they were doing the boxing episode the next week. [laughs] It was an episode I really liked, but I didn’t feel the bare-chested thing would be a smart thing to do because I was in good shape, but not boxing shape. Those guys are in incredible shape. I was working with former World Champ Carlos Palomino who I had seen box and was a great fan of, a Mexican fighter. His body and mine were a little different. [laughs]

Beltran with Ray Walston in “The Fight”

Working in the Star Trek ‘Factory’

You mentioned that there were other ideas you had. Are there some in particular you still wish they had taken up for Chakotay?

What I told them at the meeting was when it comes to sci-fi, everything seems possible, so nothing seems that interesting to me. I said, “If I chose this thing, I miss out on a myriad of other possibilities, so I would rather it come from you guys.” The several episode suggestions I had, and they weren’t really heartfelt, they were just things off the top of my head, so I didn’t have any strong feelings about a Chakotay episode.

But it is fair to say you were outspoken about the show while it was on the air and after. You have expressed a lot of opinions and critiques about Voyager.

That’s true. That same night when we had that meeting, here is what I told them: “Look you guys, all I ask for is one good scene. You don’t have to put me in anything else in any of the episodes, just give me one really good scene.” And I am not talking about “Captain, shields down to 30%” on the bridge. I am talking about a good scene between me and Tim [Russ], between me and Garrett [Wang], between me and whoever. Where there are some human feelings explored, where some human ideas are being explored. “If you could just do that for me, I would be happy,” I told them.

My criticism of the show, which a lot of people agreed with, and most of the cast agreed with, was it seems to me they were taking the easiest choices for the characters. So much of it was about these characters that were kind of omniscient and infallible. Look, Seven of Nine was a Borg and they know everything about everyone they assimilated. She has got all that knowledge. The Doctor was this all-seeing and all-knowing guy. And eventually Captain Janeway became that. And I thought, “How in the hell can you get drama from characters that know everything and see everything?”

When you know that at the end of the episode everyone is going to get out of the catastrophe that we are in, it just seemed to me the antithesis of drama to have these characters that know everything and can do anything. What is the big crisis? That was what my criticism was about. It was never about more time onscreen for Chakotay. Believe me, I loved my days off. That is why I said to those guys, just give me one good scene per episode and I will be very happy.

If they could concentrate on one good scene for Chakotay I would have been so happy, instead three or four scenes of walking down the hall and saying some kind of inane stuff. And those endless scenes on the bridge when we are being attacked and everyone knows we are going to make it out of there. We always used the same way “reroute this to that” and we are saved! “Shields are down to 18%”–well so what? We are going to make it anyway. My criticism of the writing was they were taking the easy way out.

They were probably very busy. It is very difficult doing a series and we used to do 26 episodes a year, nobody does that now, nobody. You are lucky if you get 13. So a lot of pressure on the writers and they managed to write some really good scripts and some really good episodes. But other times I and others thought, “Come on, we have seen this, we have done this before.” And that comes working seven years in a factory. You go to work, you say your lines, you try to do the best you can, you clock out , you go to work the next day and get your weekends and holidays off, otherwise you go back to the grind.

You are saying by the time Voyager started, it was already a factory with two shows in production?

When we came on Deep Space Nine was still running, The Next Generation just finished and they were also doing movies. So I guess you could say there was a glut, a Star Trek glut. And I think Voyager suffered for that. Besides the fact that we had to hold up this asinine network, UPN. We were the flagship show on that network that didn’t even reach the entire United States. At the most we were in 80% of the country.

Voyager cast publicity photo

Love, sex and Janeway

One thing they did do with Chakotay was pair you up with romantic partners quite a bit. There was romance with Seksa, implied with Janeway, fantasy sequence with B’Elanna, and with Seven. Do you feel that was good for your character? Did you feel the chemistry and drama with those?

There really was never any romance. Janeway never took Chakotay seriously. They had Chakotay doing some things that indicated he was interested in her. Like that one episode where we were stuck on that planet, but it was just her and I, so it was either Janeway or a monkey. I thought it would be better with Janeway and she had the same option, but she almost did chose the monkey the way it was it was written. [laughs] And the thing with Seska, that was before so we weren’t having a relationship, that was a back-story. And B’Elanna and I were never seriously romantic at all, we were more tight buddies from Maquis days.

So you would have liked to have seen a more genuine relationship, is that what you’re saying?

Well, yes. The thing is that I would have liked to have seen genuine relationships across the board, not just with me. I think they did a good job with Paris/B’Elanna, but where were the other relationships? Certainly not with me and Janeway. That was never being seriously considered. I know the fans wanted it, but the writers weren’t that crazy about it.

Did you want it?

When we just started the show, I thought it would box them in too soon. And so I thought flirtation here and there would be a titillating thing and that is what happened for most of it. But then I think they had Chaktoay show his hand to her and then she rebuffed him every time and after a while I had to call them and say “come on, you are making this guy out to be a complete asshole, let’s let him get over Janeway and move one.”

So I was indifferent to any kind of relationship as far as a romantic relationship and Kate [Mulgrew] was too. We didn’t see what the advantage would be and we didn’t know what the disadvantages would be. It was very early, right at the beginning of the show, when people were talking about Chakotay and Janeway and counting how many times she touched me and how many times I smiled and what kind of smile it was. Oh my god!

What I was interested was good scenes and good episodes and they did write some good episodes with her and Chakotay. They really did. The Chakotay-centered episodes I was mostly happy with, a few of them I wasn’t, but that is the way it goes in a 26-episode season.

Chakotay and Janeway together on Star Trek: Voyager

More Beltran to come

This is just part one of a two-part interview with Beltran, and he was just getting started. In part two (coming soon) we talk more about Voyager including what it was like switching from Genevieve Bujold to Kate Mulgrew, from Jennifer Lien to Jeri Ryan, and more, including Star Trek: Discovery.

The Circuit

Beltran is one of a number of Star Trek vets and others who are involved in the sci-fi anthology series The Circuit, which is currently seeking funding via Kickstarter to get off the ground. They have already passed their initial goal of $50,000 but there are more stretch goals for more resources to make a pilot. The Kickstarter campaign closes on May 23rd. The video below featuring Star Trek’s Walter Koenig gives an introduction.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/12/interview-robert-beltran-on-the-circuit-and-working-in-the-star-trek-voyager-factory/feed/74Jerry Goldsmith Finally Gets Star On Hollywood Walk of Fame For Star Trek and Other Workhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/10/jerry-goldsmith-finally-gets-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame-and-praise-for-work-on-star-trek/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/10/jerry-goldsmith-finally-gets-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame-and-praise-for-work-on-star-trek/#commentsWed, 10 May 2017 15:44:23 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47598Yesterday, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce unveiled a long overdue Walk of Fame star for the late Jerry Goldsmith, who over his five-decades long career composed five Star Trek feature films and themes for two of the TV series.

He won an Oscar for his score for The Omen in 1977, but was nominated for 17 additional ones, including a nod for 1979’s Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Some of his most memorable non-Trek scores, as hard as they are to narrow down to a few, include Chinatown, Patton, Planet of the Apes, Alien,Mulan, The Boys from Brazil,and The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

His Star Trek films were Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection and Star Trek Nemesis. His theme for The Motion Picture was used for the main title theme for Star Trek: The Next Generation and he composed the theme for Star Trek: Voyager, for which he won an Emmy.

The ceremony was lead by Leron Gubler, President & CEO Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, who noted the following when giving an overview of Goldsmith’s career:

Jerry’s music is played virtually every hour of every day around the world. This is in part due to his many contributions to the big and small screen incarnations of the legendary Star Trek. He scored five of the movies for the franchise and is heralded theme for Star Trek: The Motion Picture because the well-known signature for the long-running TV series Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Also speaking at the event was composer David Newman (Ice Age, Tarzan), who worked with Goldsmith as a young musician fresh out of school in the 70s. He spoke about Goldsmith’s music and his experiences with him, including this story about Star Trek:

I played violin on [Star Trek: The Motion Picture]. I watched Jerry struggle with this. He was trying to find a theme and he was still kind of in his early sort of mature style and I think they wanted a more kind of bombastic theme. And I watched him make his original score into what the score became. And for a young person that eventually wanted to be a film composer, it was a lesson like nothing else. Every Goldsmith movie, you felt like you were in something special.

You can watch the entire ceremony below (courtesy of Variety):

Star Trek Tribute to Jerry Goldsmith

The 2005 Special Edition DVD for Star Trek: First Contact included a tribute to Goldsmith’s work, with commentary from many stars and behind-the-scenes luminaries. You can watch that below.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/10/jerry-goldsmith-finally-gets-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame-and-praise-for-work-on-star-trek/feed/22Watch Chris Pine Singing And Dancing In ‘Lost’ Original Star Trek Episode And More On SNLhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/06/watch-chris-pine-singing-and-dancing-in-lost-original-star-trek-episode-and-more-on-snl/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/06/watch-chris-pine-singing-and-dancing-in-lost-original-star-trek-episode-and-more-on-snl/#commentsSun, 07 May 2017 05:53:43 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47565Tonight Chris Pine became the third Star Trek captain to host Saturday Night Live, following in the footsteps of William Shatner and Patrick Stewart. Unsurprisingly, SNL used the opportunity to do a Trek sketch. The premise involved a TV Land documentary showing unaired footage of a “Lost Episode” of the original Star Trek featuring a zany new character named “Spocko.” Pine plays Shatner playing Kirk. Check it out.

More clips of Pine on SNL

Here is Chris’ monologue where he explains, in song, how he is Chris Pine and not Chris Hemsworth, Chris Pratt or Chris Evans.

That wasn’t the end of Pine showing off his moves; he was singing and dancing in pretty much every sketch. Here he is having a ‘cotton candy dance party’ caught by police surveillance:

And in a Slavic music video:

Chris also led the in-house band on the “Where in the World Is Kellyanne Conway?”sketch.

Then there was this one featuring a lip-sync battle with some mechanics who happened to also be big fans of Ru Paul’s Drag Race.

Then, more singing in a sketch about a couple’s game night.

But it wasn’t all singing and dancing. Here’s Chris is in a (non-musical) reality show parody.

Their Handmaid’s Tale parody had Chris, but no singing or dancing in this one either.

The return of the original SNL Sulu

Longtime fans of SNL will recognize production designer Akira Yoshimura playing Sulu in Pine’s Star Trek sketch. He has been with the show since the 70s and first played Sulu in the classic “Star Trek: The Last Voyage” sketch back in 1976.

Yoshimura reprised the role when William Shatner hosted in 1986 for the “Star Trek V: The Restaurant Enterprise” sketch.

So what did you think of Chris Pine’s turn on SNL? Sound off below in the comments.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/06/watch-chris-pine-singing-and-dancing-in-lost-original-star-trek-episode-and-more-on-snl/feed/79Watch Chris Pine on Fallon Making Phaser Sounds, and Admit He’s ‘Terrified’ to Host SNLhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/05/watch-chris-pine-on-fallon-making-phaser-sounds-and-admit-hes-terrified-to-host-snl/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/05/watch-chris-pine-on-fallon-making-phaser-sounds-and-admit-hes-terrified-to-host-snl/#commentsFri, 05 May 2017 17:07:55 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47537Last night Chris Pine was on The Tonight Show to promote both Wonder Woman (which opens June 2nd), and this weekend’s hosting gig on Saturday Night Live. The conversation also ventured into Star Trek — how could it not? — and Chris confessed that his phaser looks like a stapler, and that he makes shooting sounds on set to make it real (much like Enterprise‘s Connor Trinneer).

Pine also talked about how he is “excited” but also “terrified” to be hosting Saturday Night Live, which will be broadcast live coast to coast. He razzed Fallon for how he famously couldn’t keep in character when he was on the show.

And of course you can’t show up on The Tonight Show without playing a game. This time it was ‘Slapjack,’ an interesting variation on blackjack.

Watch Pine’s SNL promos

NBC has released some fun promos for Chris Pine’s big “live from New York” moment. First up, the standard collection of short commercial bits, with musical guest LCD Soundsystem.

They also released this longer and somewhat avant-garde musical promo with Chris.

Saldana talks Avatar shooting schedule

Chris Pine wasn’t the only new Star Trek celeb on late night TV last night. Zoe Saldana appeared on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live to promote the opening of Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 (now in theaters). She didn’t talk Star Trek, but she did give some details on the upcoming Avatar movies, including that she will be shooting for eight months straight, and that the long delay between movies is understandable, as she feels like director James Cameron is “following a very natural sequence for his own journey.”

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/05/watch-chris-pine-on-fallon-making-phaser-sounds-and-admit-hes-terrified-to-host-snl/feed/8William Shatner Says He Is ‘Perfectly Fit’ To Return As Kirk For More Star Trekhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/05/04/shatner-says-he-is-perfectly-fit-to-return-as-kirk-for-more-star-trek/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/04/shatner-says-he-is-perfectly-fit-to-return-as-kirk-for-more-star-trek/#commentsFri, 05 May 2017 06:59:31 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47523Once again, it’s time to talk about whether William Shatner will ever return to his role as Captain James T. Kirk. The notion came up in a new interview with the actor promoting his appearance at this weekend’s Fan Expo in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. He was asked by the Regina Leader Post if he would be willing to return:

“I’m perfectly fit and ready to put on some makeup …. The problem I guess is what do you do with an aging captain whose youthful existence is already there?” said Shatner, now 86.

The problem with bringing Kirk back in the movies isn’t about him being aging captain who might interact with his younger self, as they obviously found a way to bring back Leonard Nimoy (twice), in both 2009’s Star Trek and 2013’s Star Trek Into Darkness.

The real issue is the fate that befell the Captain during Shatner’s last run as Kirk in 1994’s Star Trek: Generations. (Spoiler: he falls off a bridge and dies.) Even though there were some discussions about Shatner returning for some of the more recent Star Trek movies, producer J.J. Abrams said last summer “there’s something about his having died that makes it impossible.” Then again, Abrams also said that in Star Trek “nearly anything is possible.” So, if he got a pitch that he didn’t find contrived … you never know.

Of course with the CBS All Access show Star Trek: Discovery in production, there is another possible place for Kirk to show up. They wouldn’t have the same issues with jumping from one reality to the other, but could they ever afford him on a TV budget?

William Shatner in Star Trek: Generations

Shatner trolls Canadian PM on Star Wars Day

Today is May the 4th, also known as “Star Wars Day,” which explains the prevalence of #MayTheFourthBeWithYou hashtags on social media. One person swept up in the day was Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who sent out a tweet showing off his Star Wars socks. William Shatner, a native Canadian, fired back asking for equal time for Star Trek.

Join Shatner in Zero G

Are you looking for something exciting to do during some off time at the Star Trek Las Vegas convention this August? Well then you can join William Shatner and a few other people in a weightless adventure. Zero Gravity Corporation and Roddenberry Adventures just announced a “ZERO-G Experience® with William Shatner” for a limited number of people on an exclusive flight from Las Vegas on August 4.

Flying on board G-FORCE ONE®, ZERO-G’s specially modified Boeing 727, fans will join Shatner as the plane performs a series of parabolic arcs to “create the exhilarating feeling of floating through space.” After the flight, passengers will be able to “mingle with the Shatner during a meet and greet session.” In the press release Shatner states:

“I’ve always wondered what it would be like to actually explore the Final Frontier and now I have the opportunity to experience zero gravity firsthand. It will be an incredible adventure.”

All of this zero-G fun can be had for the low low price of $9,950. The ticket includes a ZERO-G flight suit, a “certificate of weightless completion” along with photos and video to share. More information can be found at gozerog.com.

Shatner’s Horseshow Auction

William Shatner’s annual Hollywood Charity Horseshow is on June 3rd. Leading up to the show is a silent auction, which kicked off this week. Included are dozens of bits of Hollywood memorabilia, much of which is signed by Shatner including some Star Trek items. One particularly unusual one is a Captain Kirk action figure that was flown into space. CLICK HERE to see the full selection of lots up for auction.

This Kirk figure has actually been in space, and you can buy it

Reuniting with Kruge

Back in March we reported that William Shatner had landed the role as the lead in the comedy feature film Senior Moment. Then in April, Variety reported that actor Christopher Lloyd had joined the cast. That makes it a reunion for Shatner and Lloyd, who faced off as Captain Kirk and Klingon Commander Kruge in Star Trek III: The Search For Spock back in 1984, but this time the two will be playing best friends, so they won’t be at each other’s throats.

Shatner and Lloyd face off in Star Trek III; they’ll be reunited in Senior Moment

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/04/shatner-says-he-is-perfectly-fit-to-return-as-kirk-for-more-star-trek/feed/291Clare McConnell Talks About Being Her Own Klingon On “Star Trek: Discovery”https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/04/clare-mcconnell-talks-about-being-her-own-klingon-on-star-trek-discovery/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/05/04/clare-mcconnell-talks-about-being-her-own-klingon-on-star-trek-discovery/#commentsFri, 05 May 2017 06:55:02 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47512Last week we reported four new actors were announced as part of the cast for Star Trek: Discovery. and now one of them is opening up (a little bit) about landing a job as a Klingon. Talking to Toronto’s Metro, Canadian actress Clare McConnell said that she was “very excited” to get the part of Klingon leader Dennas and she was glad she could finally talk about it after being cast last December.

She also revealed that she has been training with a dialect coach to help her with speaking Klingon, but noted she has some flexibility in how she approaches the role:

“Each series is such a classic thing, but also such an innovative thing,” she explained. “The actors have really been encouraged to make it their own. I’ve even been encouraged to make the Klingon language my own.”

McConnell is of course working on under the secrecy rules that surround the show so couldn’t give any details about her character or the plot of Discovery, but did describe some things in general with the article noting her views on how sets for the ships “looked incredible” and her Klingon costume was “very cool.” The article also adds:

McConnell said there’s an atmosphere on set that everyone wants to get it right, because Star Trek is such a beloved series.

A singing ukulele-playing Klingon

Star Trek: Discovery is McConnell’s big break as her first role in television. She only recently got into acting with only two credits to her name so far, including the upcoming independent film Dim the Fluorescents. One thing we do know about her is she can play the ukulele, as she has demonstrated with some interesting covers on her YouTube channel. Here she is doing her version of Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda.”

May 6: Star Trek Authors Day At Set Tour In NY

The Star Trek Original Series Set Tour in Ticonderoga, NY (former home of Star Trek: New Voyages/Phase II sets) is holding a special “Trek Authors Day” event on Saturday May 6th. Fans can meet and greet authors of Star Trek novels and comics on the recreated starship sets. The Authors will be there to interact, and sign autographs and books. On hand will be Michael Jan Friedman, Dave Galanter, Robert Greenberger, Glenn Hauman, David Mack, Scott Pearson, Aaron Rosenberg, Dayton Ward, Kevin Dilmore, David R. George III and William Leisner. More information and tickets are available at the official tour site.

One of the first questions asked of the group was if they would be interested in appearing on the new CBS All Access Star Trek: Discovery series currently in production. After Sirtis and Crosby answered the question directly (in the affirmative), it sparked an interesting discussion in general about the new show and what it means for the franchise. The full exchange is below.

Marina Sirtis: I would do it but they would have to pay me a lot of money to get back in that space suit. Because I would have to go to the fat farm and lose about 15 pounds. So I would do it if they paid me a lot of money, and I don’t care what she does, I’m an actress. So just point me in the right direction.

Denise Crosby: Who would I be? Would I be Tasha? Would I be Sela? Something in between. But of course, yeah, it would be great fun to do. Just want to see if I could get back in that space suit again.

Jonathan Frakes: I am looking forward to Star Trek: Discovery. You know Jason Isaacs is the new captain of the Enterprise [actually it’s the USS Discovery].

William Shatner: I know nothing…I couldn’t have followed it less, is it supposed to be good?

Jonathan Frakes: I haven’t seen it.

Gates McFadden: I bet is going to be great.

Brent Spiner: We are hoping it is.

Jonathan Frakes: I am an eternal optimist.

Brent Spiner: It is good for everybody if it is good. Because it goes on and on and on and we are part of this giant epic which is the great American epic, Star Trek.

Jonathan Frakes: Remember how you felt when Star Trek: The Next Generation came out?

William Shatner: Awful. [joking, crowd laughs]

Jonathan Frakes: We could all embrace that.

TNG crew on the casting process

When auditioning, Gates McFadden was given a choice of reading for Crusher, Troi or Tasha Yar. She chose Dr. Crusher because the scene seemed humorous and she thought the character would be comic relief, noting “that was the only funny scene I got in seven seasons,” to which Denise Crosby replied “at least you got one.”

When auditioning for Troi, the only direction Marina Sirtis got from casting director Junie Lowry was “just think of her as Norwegian.”

When given a choice to read for Commander Riker, Spiner replied “Riker?! Who wants to play Riker?” to which Frakes quipped “What time did you go to work in the morning?” (referring to Spiner’s extra makeup requirements)

In general all agreed “they really didn’t know what they wanted for anyone” when casting TNG.

Sirtis noted many people auditioned for Picard, including Bo Svenson, adding “Can you imagine if he got the part? We might not be here today.”

Cast talk TNG stinkers

When asked to identify episodes that weren’t the best, Jonathan Frakes pointed to “Code of Honor,” saying it was “a real stinker” for being both racist and misogynist.

Denise Crosby said she felt the entire “first season was dicey.”

Gates McFadden picked “Angel One” as the worst of the series.

Discussing that episode, Sirtis noted: “I love Riker as much as the next person, but this planet has been run by women for all of eternity. And OK the boys are dressed in ballerina outfits, but that is how they dress. And then Riker comes down and he makes one speech and they decide to change their form of government.”

Spiner noted “We were doing 26 episodes a season…at least 6 of them were really good, and maybe another another 15 were pretty good and then 4 or 5 were really horrible.”

Full Video

There is much more fun with the TNG cast. You can watch the full video below (thanks to Steven Alvarez).

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/23/tng-cast-talk-possible-roles-and-hopes-for-star-trek-discovery-video/feed/52Steve Wozniak: Star Trek Inspired The Founding Of Applehttps://trekmovie.com/2017/04/20/steve-wozniak-star-trek-inspired-the-founding-of-apple/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/20/steve-wozniak-star-trek-inspired-the-founding-of-apple/#commentsThu, 20 Apr 2017 17:01:57 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47295This weekend marks the second annual Silicon Valley Comic Con (SVCC), which was created by Apple, Inc. co-founder Steve Wozniak and Stan Lee. TrekMovie was there last year for the inaugural event, which set the record as the largest event ever hosted in the San Jose convention center.

In an interview with HuffPo promoting the con–which will include an appearance by a number of stars from the Star Trek franchise—Wozniak said:

Star Trek had done so much for me. I’m not sure I would’ve had the inspiration that I had to ever start Apple, and do all these technical things and I don’t think I would’ve had the meaning in my life if I hadn’t gone to Star Trek conventions when I was young, and had a car, and could drive to Southern California to attend them. I mean, that was … these were such important things to me, I want to duplicate that with the Comic Con, that other people can, who like that sort of thing, that experience is just worthwhile.

Later in the same interview, Wozniak talked more about why he started SVCC and again invoked Star Trek, this time tying it into his own sense of morality:

I grew up being inspired by those sort of things, like I said, going to Star Trek conventions, concerts in my life. I still do that as much as I can. Don’t close yourself off to having fun. If you’re worth something, it’s very likely to come your way. Some kind of level of success. But that should never be your end goal. Like you mentioned before, some of these characters, like on Star Trek: The Next Generation, it’s all about being good people morality-wise, and my ethics have been extreme my whole life. I would never, ever do anything somebody could call me, “You’re unethical” or “You’re trying to make something off of me” or “You’re trying to deceive me.” No, that is so important to me, to be doing things for a good reason.

Apple has become the biggest publicly traded company in the world since its founding in 1976, and is currently valued at over $750 billion, and much of that success is due to the company making Star Trek tech into reality.

I was still dating [first wife] Alice [Robertson], still living in my first apartment in Cupertino, still coming home every night to watch Star Trek on TV and work on my projects.

In the same book, he talks about how the first program he ran to test his version of BASIC for the Apple I computer back in 1976 was the Star Trek text game. And he even credits Star Trek with how he met his second wife, Candice Clark, recalling the story of how he bought tickets to a Star Trek film in bulk for Apple employees and she came to him to ask for “a bunch.”

Silicon Valley Comic Con runs this Friday through Sunday at the San Jose Convention Center. It will feature appearances and signing opportunities for a number of Star Trek stars. From the original Star Trek series both William Shatner and Nichelle Nichols will be there. And on Saturday there will be a 30th anniversary Star Trek: The Next Generation panel moderated by Shatner and featuring Jonathan Frakes, Brent Spiner, Marina Sirtis, Gates McFadden, Denise Crosby and Robert O’Reilly.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/20/steve-wozniak-star-trek-inspired-the-founding-of-apple/feed/7Patrick Stewart Describes ‘Negative Aspect’ Of Star Trek Typecastinghttps://trekmovie.com/2017/04/12/patrick-stewart-describes-negative-star-trek-typecasting/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/12/patrick-stewart-describes-negative-star-trek-typecasting/#commentsThu, 13 Apr 2017 03:11:30 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47132A radio interview Sir Patrick Stewart did a couple of years ago that went mostly unnoticed has been making the rounds in the last week, featuring some brutally honest comments the actor made about life after Star Trek: The Next Generation. Stewart described what it was like being typecast, telling KPCC’s The Frame:

Jean-Luc Picard was who I was. I did finally get into a room to meet with a director that I had been clamoring to meet, and he was doing a movie I wanted to be in as a supporting role, and we had a good meeting. At the end he said, “Look, you’re a terrific actor, and I would love to have you in my movie, but why would I want Jean-Luc Picard in my picture?”

Patrick Stewart as Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

Stewart also said his success on Star Trek “really hurt” his career for a time, but noted how he was “fortunate” to be part of of the Trek franchise as well as the X-Men franchise. However, due to his experience with Star Trek, he had some hesitation before taking on the role of Professor Charles Xavier, saying:

I was reluctant at first because the “Star Trek” movies were over and I was already beginning to experience a negative aspect of them. Close identification, partly through the television series, with one character can discourage directors or producers from wanting to employ you in other means, because the identification’s so strong.

Stewart eventually ended up playing Professor “X” Charles Xavier in more movies than he played Jean-Luc Picard.

Stewart’s first time as Charles Xavier in X-Men (2000)

Stewart: it was “over” for TNG after Insurrection

It is also interesting that Sir Patrick talks about reluctance to take on Xavier “after” the Star Trek films were “over.” X-Men (his first time playing Xavier) was released in 2000, so it seems that Stewart considered his time with Trek done following 1998’s Star Trek: Insurrection. After that film failed to build on the success of Star Trek: First Contact, it did seem like it could be over for the TNG films, but Paramount eventually did another in 2002 with Star Trek: Nemesis.

The box office failure of Nemesis put an end to the TNG movie series, and likely to Stewart, an end to Jean-Luc Picard on film. However, in recent years the actor has said he would be open to returning to the role if there was a “really good reason” and a “good script,” but he also acknowledges it is unlikely to happen as Picard is getting “rather elderly.” Then again, the aged hero angle worked for Stewart’s last return as Xavier in this year’s Logan.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/12/patrick-stewart-describes-negative-star-trek-typecasting/feed/37Connor Trinneer, James Grime, and The Math of Khanhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/04/09/connor-trinneer-james-grime-and-the-math-of-khan/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/09/connor-trinneer-james-grime-and-the-math-of-khan/#commentsSun, 09 Apr 2017 20:00:28 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47056On Wednesday April 6, Star Trek and math came together with a highly engaging spin at “The Math of Khan,” a talk given by James Grime, PhD, at New York City’s National Museum of Mathematics. The event was hosted by Star Trek: Enterprise‘s Connor Trinneer, aka Chief Engineer Trip Tucker, although he was given a promotion on the spot, introduced to the crowd as the Captain of the Enterprise. He seemed pretty happy about the upgrade!

We were on site to cover Trinneer’s intro, Grime’s presentation, and a quick video interview with Trinneer and a young fan.

Connor Trinneer warms up the crowd with imaginary phase-pistols

Trinneer’s opening remarks were a hit with the full capacity crowd, as he talked about the “disco” warp core he learned about on his first day on the Engineering set, and his propensity for adding in his own sounds–like any kid with a toy gun–whenever Trip was shooting a phase-pistol. (“Pshew pshew!”) While he finally learned to stop doing it out loud, he continued doing it in his “inside voice” for the run of the series.

He then introduced James Grime, encouraging the crowd to watch Grime on YouTube, and described him as “so charming, so smart, and so spot on.” Trinner stayed for the entire talk, then chatted with fans afterwards, answering their questions and posing for selfies.

James Grime chose the original series for his talk due to its “general awesomeness.”

Mathematician James Grime digs into the math of Star Trek

Mathematician/comedian/lecturer James Grime took the stage and dove right in. His presentation was a mix of perfectly chosen photos, video clips, and original graphics, looking at times when the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise from the original Star Trek gave stats or theories on various topics. He included McCoy’s estimates on interplanetary life from “Balance of Terror,” Spock’s tribble quantity analysis in “The Trouble with Tribbles,” and Sulu’s description of the rate of ESP power growth in “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” examining the reality behind the scripted lines. He also determined the answer, once and for all, about whether or not red shirts are actually more likely to get killed than other members of the crew.

James Grime addresses the ultimate Star Trek question.

A look at the stats on red shirt fatalities. Is it really more dangerous to be a red shirt?

To get the answer, Grime dug into the real stats: how many red shirts are actually on the Enterprise compared to gold shirts and blue shirts?

The numbers all have to be put into the right context to get accurate odds.

His conclusion: if you want to stay safe on the Enterprise, become a scientist.

Spock’s calculation that there were 1,771,561 tribbles in the compartment, basing that on a three day period and an average litter of 10 every 12 hours, and factoring in the available wheat was correct, says James Grime.

Grime also addressed the Liar’s Paradox, pointing out that Kirk has talked four different computers into destroying themselves.*

The event was part of an ongoing “Math Encounters” series at the museum. The museum’s executive director and CEO, Cindy Lawrence, explained why they decided to include Star Trek as part of the series.

I had a conversation with somebody over the summer about Star Trek and about whether there was math in it, and I thought, ‘What a great idea to have a talk on the math of Star Trek.’ I was soliciting different mathematicians to see if somebody could put something together, but nobody really had anything or had any ideas. And independently, the chair of our advisory council, James Tanton, said to me, “There’s a great guy who should give a talk about math, his name is James Grime.” And I went to his website, and one of the first things that popped out to me was a talk on the math of Star Trek. Literally, it was just weeks from the conversation I’d had about how that would be a great talk, to coming across James Grime. So then I just had my fingers crossed that he would say yes. And he did!

A young fan interviews Connor Trinneer

I brought my son Nathaniel, who has been watching Enterprise for the first time, and he asked Trinneer about the best episodes to watch, how to get his friends into the show, and the fun of being an action figure:

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/09/connor-trinneer-james-grime-and-the-math-of-khan/feed/3Greg Grunberg Talks Star Trek Roles At Middle East Film & Comic Con, Report & Pixhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/04/07/greg-grunberg-talks-star-trek-roles-at-middle-east-film-comic-con-report-pix/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/07/greg-grunberg-talks-star-trek-roles-at-middle-east-film-comic-con-report-pix/#commentsFri, 07 Apr 2017 20:27:34 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=47031This weekend marks the sixth annual Middle East Film and Comic Con, with fans from all over the region descending upon the Dubai World Trade Center to mingle, shop, cosplay, and meet their heroes. Dubai is the Las Vegas of the Middle East, so it makes sense that the largest geek convention in the region should make its way here.

Headline stars for MEFCC included Anthony Mackie (Falcon in the Marvel Cinematic Universe), Liam Cunningham (Davos from Game of Thrones), and filmmaker/comic book author/actor/writer/nerd Kevin Smith (Clerks, etc.). But there was one star who beamed in from the Trek universe, Greg Grunberg, who appeared in 2009’s Star Trek and last year’s Star Trek Beyond.

Grunberg is most famous for his role in NBC’s Heroes, but his main claim to fame is his lifelong friendship with Star Trek producer J.J. Abrams, whom he has known since age four. Abrams has been casting Grunberg in his productions going back to his first Super 8 films when they were kids. Now Grunberg’s eldest son has an internship at Abrams’ production company Bad Robot, he told the crowd.

“He’s lucky he has me as a friend!” Grunberg joked.

Greg Grunberg at MEFCC 2017

Grunberg told the story of how he was supposed to appear as the redshirt Olson in the 2009 Star Trek film, but couldn’t because of a scheduling conflict, so Abrams cast him as the voice of Kirk’s irate stepfather. Determined to cast him as a redshirt, Abrams had Grunberg play “Snap” Wexley, an X-Wing pilot in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

“I have more lines in that movie than Mark Hamill,” Grunberg bragged.

After finishing his scenes, Force Awakens staff tried to get Grunberg to record the lines, “I’ve been hit!” “I’m going down!” and “Goodbye!” Knowing where this would (inevitably) take his character, he refused.

“And I lived!”

Grunberg had a larger role in Star Trek Beyond as the Yorktown’s Commander Finnegan, the Kelvin-verse counterpart of Kirk’s academy bully from the original series episode “Shore Leave.” The not-exactly-svelte actor joked that he insisted on wearing a spandex suit like Star Trek: Voyager’s Jeri Ryan’s, to help “shape his figure.” Grunberg also revealed how it was he who suggested the name Finnegan from canon and co-writer Simon Pegg eagerly agreed.

“That was just amazing, amazing,” he said. “I just love the fact that there’s a history to the character.”

Greg Grunberg says it was his idea to name his Beyond character “Finnegan”

Star Trek At MEFCC

The convention did have some more highlights for Star Trek fans. There was a display of a captain’s chair from Star Trek Beyond where you could take photos (for free!). There was also a photon torpedo from Star Trek: Into Darkness.

While it was delightful to see these attractions at a con so far from Riverside, Iowa, there was not much of a Trek presence otherwise. In the fandom explosion of the last 15 years, Star Trek alas has not had as much of an impact as Marvel Comics, Star Wars, Harry Potter, and other franchises in the Middle East.

Star Trek cosplay hasn’t hit Dubai yet

I didn’t see any Starfleet uniforms, Klingons, or green alien women at this year’s Dubai comic con. (If I missed any, please tweet them to us @TrekMovie !) Having said that, the convention’s slogan was “Live long and comic con.” Staff wore shirts that read “Make it so” and volunteers’ shirts read “To boldly go where no volunteer has gone before,” both in the Crillee Italic font used for the TNG titles.

Nichelle Nichols looking forward to Discovery, open to beaming in (Trinneer too)

In a new interview promoting her upcoming appearance at this weekend’s Wizard World in St. Louis, MO, Star Trek‘s Nichelle Nichols talked a little bit about Star Trek: Discovery. It appears that she’d be interested in turning up on the show:

St. Louis Dispatch: The new show “Star Trek: Discovery” is the first installment of the franchise to have a black woman as the lead character. Have you met Sonequa Martin-Green? Do you have any interest in appearing on the show?

Nichelle Nichols: I have not yet (met) Sonequa but am absolutely looking forward to the opportunity. If there’s a role that the producers and I think would be a good fit for an appearance, I’m absolutely open to discussion.

Nichelle Nichols at WonderCon last weekend – actress is open to appearing in Star Trek: Discovery

Conner Trinneer: I’ve thought about this. I’m like, “Could I be like Obi Wan, or R2D2, or Princess Leia, when they do a little video presentation of certain things you need to know, and all of a sudden Trip’ll pop up?”

Sonequa Martin-Green’s announcement delay explained

On Monday we reported that CBS finally officially announced that Sonequa Martin-Green had been cast in Star Trek: Discovery. The official acknowledgment came months after she was actually cast and had started working. As we had speculated, this delay appears to be all about her role on AMC’s The Walking Dead. Showrunner Scott Gimple explained it to TV Line — WARNING: CONTAINS Walking Dead SPOILERS:

TVLINE: Let’s start with Sasha. Was her death the result of Sonequa Martin-Green wanting to move on to Star Trek: Discovery, or was it strictly a storyline decision?

Scott Gimple: Storyline. The folks over at Star Trek got lucky with the timing.

TVLINE: Were there discussions between AMC and CBS All Access to keep her casting on Discovery a secret, so as not to tip off fans that Sasha wouldn’t survive the season?

Scott Gimple: We were hoping to [keep her casting on the D.L.], but it didn’t happen, which was kind of a drag. It seems like they did try, it just got out. But that just put it on us to tell a great story. The episode is the most important thing.

Martin-Green in The Walking Dead Season 7 finale – producers were hoping to keep her Trek casting a secret until after it aired

The Klingon King isn’t really a King

Last week we reported on a joke co-showrunner Aaaron Harberts made about actor Chris Obi (T’Kuvma) being the “king” of Klingons. That tweet prompted some websites and videos and fans to think that this was some kind of reveal about the show, as can be seen below.

@AaronHarberts@obidon1 Have you ever watched Star Trek? Ever? Any episode? Any involving Klingons? Spoiler alert: they don’t do monarchy.

The King has left the building as production appears to have wrapped on 102

So it appears that “king” Chris Obi is done with work on Star Trek for a while at least, as evidenced by this latest “Dave and Chris Riding in Cars” video from Tuesday (see below). Obi left Toronto, where Discovery is shot, for New York, saying he was on “a bit of a break now for me” for Star Trek, adding that he felt Trek fans are “the best fans in the universe.” Obi had this to say about the show:

Chris Obi: You guys are really going to love [Star Trek: Discovery]. You are going to be really proud of your devotion to the this universe, to the world. I believe we have done you guys very proud. Peace out and live long and prosper.

Another Klingon spotted outside of Toronto is actress Mary Chieffo (L’Rell) who has been showing up at events in LA for the last week. And over the weekend, Supervising Producer Ted Sullivan (and his trusty companion Jason Gorn) also left Toronto to return to the Star Trek: Discovery writers room in Los Angeles, where both are back at work this week. As we previously reported, Ted was the writer who was assigned to oversee production on episode 102.

While not every writer for Star Trek: Discovery is, or needs to be, a big time Trekkie, there certainly are some on the crew who are genuine fans. You can see that simply by following them on Twitter. As noted before Ted Sulivan is certainly a fan as this tweet today honoring the 50th anniversary of the airing of the TOS episode “City on the Edge of Forever” shows.

And yesterday, Discovery writer Sean Cochran honored First Contact Day by tweeting out some love for Zefram Cochrane, who he likes to imagine is his future son, despite the very slight difference in spelling.

And finally, writer Bo Yeon Kim has made no secret of her love of Trek. In the last week she has shown off her Mr. Spock doodle and made no excuses for her love of Deep Space Nine’s Dax, but perhaps this tweet showing what she wore to WonderCon sums it up best.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/04/06/discovery-bits-nichelle-wants-in-klingon-king-heads-out-sonequa-delay-explained/feed/50April Star Trek Events: Your Guide To WonderCon And Morehttps://trekmovie.com/2017/03/30/april-star-trek-events-your-guide-to-wondercon-and-more/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/30/april-star-trek-events-your-guide-to-wondercon-and-more/#commentsThu, 30 Mar 2017 23:39:05 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46842This weekend Wondercon is back in Anaheim, California, and we have a preview of all the Star Trek-related panels and events. Also we have a guide to all the April conventions featuring Star Trek stars along with other exhibits and events for the month.

Hollywood Sci-Fi and Horror Museum (TNG bridge replica, TOS Wax Figures display), Booth #2049Nichelle Nichols to appear Friday-Sunday, Marina Sirtis to appear on Saturday. Both will do autographs and signing. Also will have part of the TOS Bridge Replica and Spock wax figure.

MORE APRIL STAR TREK-RELATED EVENTS AND EXHIBITS

April 5: Math of Khan – National Museum of Mathematics – New York, NYThe National Museum of Mathematics presents two “Math Encounters” presentations about Star Trek and math at 4:00pm and 7:00pm. Both to be introduced by Star Trek: Enterprise’s Connor Trinneer. Tickets are free, more info at momath.org.

April 19: Penn Museum Star Trek Night – Philadelphia, PAChoose your own adventure and take the ultimate challenge, exploring the international galleries as never before while earning your Starfleet rank at the Penn Museum. Tickets cost $20, more info at penn.museum.

April 20-27: Remembering Leonard Documentary premiere – Newport Beach, CA Newport Beach Film Festival will have the world premiere of Remembering Leonard, Julie Nimoy’s “intimate journey” documentary into her father’s life, legacy and battle with COPD. Tickets go on sale April 1st at newportbeachfilmfest.com.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/30/april-star-trek-events-your-guide-to-wondercon-and-more/feed/4Cast and Crew of “Star Trek: Discovery” Tweet Production Updates, Declare Klingon Royaltyhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/03/28/cast-and-crew-of-star-trek-discovery-tweet-production-updates-declare-klingon-royalty/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/28/cast-and-crew-of-star-trek-discovery-tweet-production-updates-declare-klingon-royalty/#commentsTue, 28 Mar 2017 18:00:09 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46807In our last Star Trek: Discovery update, we got a brief look at some behind-the-scenes photos from the set of the newest Trek show. Since then, the production has been held tightly under wraps, with very little information trickling from Pinewood Studios in Toronto. Even so, tweets from the DSC cast and crew are giving us a glimpse into how things are going on the production, often through the eyes of a Gorn.

Showrunners depart Toronto as production on “102” continues

DSC showrunner Aaron Harberts (@AaronHarberts) and Gretchen Berg, who were picked to run Discovery after Bryan Fuller’s departure, have been in Toronto this month working hard on the show. Aaron’s latest tweets, including one with a picture of a very sad looking Gretchen, confirm that their work in Toronto is done for the time being as they head back to Los Angeles… and feel quite sad about it!

In another tweet, Aaron thanked Supervising Producer Ted Sullivan (@karterhol) for his work on “102”. In our last update, we learned that the various writers and producers will be taking turns on set in Toronto. For the last couple of weeks, Producer Ted Sullivan has been on hand supervising what we presume is the second episode of Discovery.

Mary Chieffo, Discovery‘s Klingon Commander L’Rell, has taken to twitter to show off some of her Trekkie credentials. And, we must say, she’s doing a great job of it. Hats off to the actress, who not only plays a Klingon but actually speaks Klingon.

While we are not getting any peaks at the sets, props, or makeup from the new Star Trek, one honorary member of the Discovery crew has been having his own adventures. We’re talking, of course, about Jason Gorn.

In our last Discovery tweets roundup, Jason Gorn was having fun in Los Angeles with Star Trek: Discovery writers Bo Yeon Kim and Erika Lippoldt. Now we have an update on Jason’s whereabouts. He was shipped — er, he flew coach — to Toronto to join Producer Ted Sullivan for more adventures.

One other twitter account we’ve been watching is one run by none other than Nick Meyer’s dog, Stella. She is a sarcastic presence who has been pitching ideas in the writers room since the beginning. This week, Aaron Harberts thanked her and her human companion for his notes on episode 103 of Discovery.

Discovery is very tightly under wraps, and so until any more official promotions of the show, we’ll have to settle for the cast and crew playing the role of the ultimate tease by posting pictures of Toronto.

On Friday, Star Trek’s Chris Pine joined the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds demonstration squadron as they prepped for this weekend’s Los Angeles County Air Show. He went up in Thunderbirds #8 F-16 Fighting Falcon and according to the Air Force, they “showed him what 9.2G’s feels like while also getting to experience Mach 1!”

Chris Pine boards Thunderbirds #8, which has been personalized for him for the day (photo: Markeloper Aviation Photography)

Chris Pine preps for his flight with the USAF Thunderbirds (photo: USAF)

Chris Pine gives out hand signals before taking off at the LA County Airshow (photo: USAF)

It’s not all fun and flying around for Pine. This week The Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals has been promoting Children’s Hospital Week on social media to raise awareness, and he joined in to support the campaign.

The way the campaign works is that anyone can post a photo wearing a bandage with the name of a child who has benefited from a children’s hospital with #ChildrensHospitalsWeek hashtag. Pine is showing his support for 15 year-old Pennsylvania lung transplant recipient Luke Maeding, who happens to be a big Star Trek fan. Pine and Luke did a photo shoot together last month, and Pine gave Luke a collection of Star Trek toys, as well as a personally signed Star Trek Beyond t-shirt with the message “you know more about Trek than I do.”

Star Trek’s Dr. McCoy, Karl Urban,has been cast alongside Sofia Vergara and Andy Garcia in the new thriller Bent, where he’ll star as a “shamed and discredited narcotics detective.” Shooting begins this month in Rome.

Zachary Quinto (Spock) was just cast to co-star in Who We Are Now, with Julianne Nicholson and Emma Roberts. Quinto will be playing a former U.S. soldier in the drama about a former felon who is trying to regain custody of her son. The film has just started shooting in New York.

Star Trek’s Uhura, Zoe Saldana revealed her character’s new poster for Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 on Twitter this week. She also did a new interview with E! News talking about the film, and confirmed that she’ll begin work on the next Avatar movies in August.

Sir Patrick Stewart took time out this week to visit his beloved Huddersfield Town AFC, where he hosted a private screening of his new film Logan for the players. The Star Trek: The Next Generation star is president of Huddersfield Town AFC’s academy and lifelong supporter of the club. The Terriers, as they are known, currently sit in third place in the English Football League Championship with ten games remaining in the season. Stewart is confident that Huddersfield Town will at least make the EFL Championship play-off at Wembley Stadium, where they will have the chance to secure promotion to the English Premier League, and promised he will try to “attend every match until the end of the season.” Should they win promotion to the Premier League, Stewart’s Terriers would come up against Tottenham Hotspur, who count Marina Sirtis as a die-hard supporter. It’ll be chaos on the bridge when those teams meet! Watch video of Stewart visiting Huddersfield Town AFC at SkySports.com.

Last night Linda Park, Star Trek: Enterprise’s Hoshi Sato, debuted in her starring role in the play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Anteus Theater in Glendale. The actress recently gave an interview to LA Weekly talking about being the first Asian-American to be cast as Maggie. She also shared an opening night photo on Instagram:

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/25/chris-pine-flies-with-the-thunderbirds-and-supports-a-young-star-trek-fan/feed/20Anthony Rapp Talks About Being Star Trek’s First Gay TV Characterhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/03/23/anthony-rapp-honored-to-play-gay-character-in-star-trek-discovery/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/23/anthony-rapp-honored-to-play-gay-character-in-star-trek-discovery/#commentsThu, 23 Mar 2017 22:41:00 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46754Last November it was first revealed that actor Anthony Rapp was cast in Star Trek: Discovery to play the role of Lt. Stamets, an astromycologist and science officer on the USS Discovery. It was also officially confirmed that Stamets would be the first ever openly gay character on a Star Trek TV show (and the second in franchise history following the reveal that Sulu is gay in 2016’s Star Trek Beyond).

I can say that I’m in it, and that I’m really excited about it. I pretty much am not allowed to say anything else. I don’t even know if I’m allowed to say that. It’s so profoundly under wraps, which I completely understand and actually endorse. But I’m really excited.

But Rapp did have a bit more to say on what it was like to be a gay man playing the first gay character on a Star Trek TV show:

I’m honored. I’m also honored to be a part of a piece of work that’s part of the cultural pantheon. It’s kind of crazy that I get to be a part of something that means so much to so many people. It meant a lot to me, too. I’m thrilled and I’m honored to be the vehicle for this aspect of the story that’s being told.

For much more, read the full interview at MetroWeekly.com. A trailer for bwoy is below.

This afternoon, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced nominations for the 44th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards. Included on the list were three stars from Star Trek on TV. Firstly was Nichelle Nichols, who has been nominated for Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series for her role as Lucinda Winters, the estranged mother of Neil Winters (Kristoff St. John) on the CBS soap The Young and the Restless. Nichols, who’s been a fan of the show for decades, appeared in two episodes last September, helping to celebrate the show’s 11,000th episode. This is Nichols’ first nod from the Emmys after five decades of working in television. Here’a s clip of her Emmy-nominated performance:

Another Trek star nominated today was Armin Shimerman, Quark from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine who is up for the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting or Guest Actor in a Digital Daytime Drama Series. Shimmerman got the nod for his role as Max on the Western web series Red Bird. This too is Shimerman’s first Emmy nomination. See an episode of Red Bird featuring Shimerman below.

Finally, Whoopi Goldberg was nominated, along with her colleagues on ABC’s The View, for Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host. Goldberg, Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Guinan, already has two Daytime Emmys and this is her fourteenth nomination.

Whoopi Goldberg nominated again for hosting “The View”

John Cho To Play Billy Eichner’s Boyfriend on Difficult People

Next up, John Cho. TVLine reports that the he has landed a recurring role on the third season of the Hulu original sitcom Difficult People. Cho will be playing Todd, the “first real boyfriend” of star Billy Eichner’s character Billy Epstein. According to the report, Todd is “an advertising executive who’s every bit as mean and twisted as Billy.” The new season of Difficult People premieres this summer, and co-stars Andrea Martin, who originated the role of Ishka, Quark and Rom’s mother, on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

And of course there were many many more people joining in, including people from inside and out of the world of Star Trek. We have curated some of the best from Twitter of those sharing their love for the original Captain Kirk. Of course there were some of his fellow Trek franchise stars sharing their thoughts, including Brent Spiner, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton, and Marina Sirtis from Star Trek: The Next Generation: .

And speaking of Next Generation people, producers Rick Berman and Brannon Braga also weighed in for Bill. In the case of Brannon, Shatner replied with a playful jibe about how Braga killed off Capt. Kirk in Star Trek: Generations.

@WilliamShatner. I'm not quite sure how you do it. You're a role model to so many of us. Happy birthday!

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/22/the-world-celebrates-william-shatners-birthday/feed/24First Group Photo Of Star Trek: Discovery Cast Taken at James Frain’s Birthday Celebrationhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/03/21/first-group-photo-of-star-trek-discovery-taken-at-james-frains-birthday-celebration/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/21/first-group-photo-of-star-trek-discovery-taken-at-james-frains-birthday-celebration/#commentsTue, 21 Mar 2017 22:39:03 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46697For the first time we can see the cast of Star Trek: Discovery together, and it is all thanks to James Frain’s birthday.

Discovery Cast Celebrate James Frain’s Birthday

As we reported on Friday there was a flurry of activity as many of the cast and crew of Star Trek: Discovery arrived in Toronto, Canada for more production on the upcoming CBS All Access TV series. And while in Toronto James Frain, who plays Sarek, celebrated his birthday with much of the cast at a local restaurant. Thanks to actor Chris Obi’s Instagram account, there is a picture of the occasion.

Posted to Instagram by Chris Obi with caption “We are Star Trek family! Celebrating birthday of James Frain.”

This photo is now the first group shot of most of the main cast for Discovery. Going from left to right we can see Jason Isaacs (Captain Lorca of the U.S.S. Discovery), Michelle Yeoh (Captain Georgiou of the U.S.S. Shenzhou), Chris Obi (Klingon leader T’Kuvma), lead actor Sonequa Martin-Green (Lieutenant Commander Rainsford of the Discovery) and her husband Kenric, Doug Jones (Lieutenant Saru, Science Officer on the Discovery), James Frain (Sarek), and Shazad Latif (Kol, Klingon protege to T’Kuvma).

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/21/first-group-photo-of-star-trek-discovery-taken-at-james-frains-birthday-celebration/feed/35Giants and Phillies Celebrate Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Shatner Gets A Baseball Cardhttps://trekmovie.com/2017/03/21/giants-and-phillies-celebrate-star-trek-the-next-generation-and-shatner-gets-a-baseball-card/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/21/giants-and-phillies-celebrate-star-trek-the-next-generation-and-shatner-gets-a-baseball-card/#commentsTue, 21 Mar 2017 20:02:49 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46703Star Trek and baseball, two great traditions, meet once again this season with special days celebrating the 30th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Opening day for the new season of Major League Baseball is only two weeks away (Monday, April 3rd) and teams across the league are just announcing their scheduled special events. Two of these events are of special interest to Star Trek fans. First up: Friday, September 1st will be “Star Trek Night” at AT&T park in San Francisco. The Giants are playing the St. Louis Cardinals and promising “various pre-game and in-game elements will be themed around Star Trek, making you feel like you are stepping right onto the set of this iconic franchise!” The Giants also note that San Francisco is special to Trek because it’s home of Starfleet Command, which may be why the Giants have held a number of Star Trek days in the past. If you purchase a special event ticket you’ll get a collector’s edition Star Trek/Giants T-Shirt commemorating the 30th Anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation. More information and tickets at MLB.com.

Collector’s T-Shirt for San Francisco Giants Star Trek Night

And on Tuesday, September 26th, the Philadelphia Phillies will be holding a special Star Trek: The Next Generation 30th Anniversary Night at Citizens Bank Park, where they will be taking on the Washington Nationals. The first 3,000 fans who purchase tickets will receive a coupon for an exclusive Phillies Captain Picard bobble figurine. More information and tickets at MLB.com.

Picard Phillies Bobblehead for Star Trek: The Next Generation Night

Shatner Gets a Baseball Card

These Star Trek Days have been a somewhat regular occurrence at major and minor league baseball games over the years. There were a few of them last year celebrating the 50th anniversary of the franchise, including one with the Boston Red Sox, which featured the original Captain Kirk, William Shatner, throwing out the ceremonial first pitch. This special moment is being commemorated by the Topps baseball card company.

Front of Topps Shatner card

A William Shatner card is part of the Topps series of “First Pitch” cards included in the 2017 Baseball Series 1 collection. The Shatner card is one of 20 celebrity First Pitch cards included this year.

Back of 2017 Topps William Shatner First Pitch card

Of course, as with all baseball cards, it is part of the fun of collecting to find specific cards which are randomly sorted into the various packs sold by Topps. However, if you want to skip all that, you can buy just the Shatner card from some sellers on Amazon, currently priced at $3.99.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/21/giants-and-phillies-celebrate-star-trek-the-next-generation-and-shatner-gets-a-baseball-card/feed/11Celeb Watch: Sir Patrick Officially A Legend, Shatner Lands ‘Senior Moment,’ And Morehttps://trekmovie.com/2017/03/20/celeb-watch-sir-patrick-officially-a-legend-shatner-lands-senior-moment-and-more/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/20/celeb-watch-sir-patrick-officially-a-legend-shatner-lands-senior-moment-and-more/#commentsMon, 20 Mar 2017 19:00:51 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46663Patrick Stewart is a legend (and is talking about marijuana), William Shatner has been cast in a new romantic comedy, Linda Park talks new Enterprise fans and her upcoming projects, and Robert Picardo will record your voicemail message. Also, there is sad news with iconic Star Trek guest star Lawrence Montaigne passing away.

Patrick Stewart Wins Empire Legend Award

On Sunday night in London Sir Patrick Stewart became the seventh recipient of the Empire Legend Award at the 22nd annual Empire Magazine Awards. Past honorees include Helen Mirren, Alan Rickman, and Tom Cruise. The award was presented to the Star Trek: The Next Generation star by his long-time friend Sir Ian McKellen. After some jibes at Stewart’s expense, McKellen got serious saying “The range of his work is so gratifying and enviable…He’s one of my heroes for the way he stands up for his causes. He’s the actor that people of my generation would like to be.”

Stewart was greeted with a standing ovation, and not just because he gave McKellen a big kiss when he got on stage (see above photo). Stewart got philosophical while accepting the award, saying (via Empire):

“‘Success is an impostor. It conceals the flaw, the wound, the fundamental doubt at the core of the artists’ being’. Well, I only quoted that as I wanted to go down as the only actor in history to quote Nietzche. But nevertheless, sometimes, Mr Nietzche, you are right.” He also makes sure to thank his “brother and friend, Ian.”

Star Trek Beyond was also nominated for Best Makeup and Hair, but the award went to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. More details on the ceremony at empireonline.com.

As if we didn’t already know Patrick Stewart was a legend (photo: Empire)

Stewart Backs Medical Marijuana in UK, Reveals He Uses it Every Day for Arthritis

Speaking of Sir Patrick, this week the actor took on another cause, advocating for medical marijuana in the United Kingdom. Oxford University announced a new study on the medical benefits of marijuana, titled the Cannabis Research Plan. Backers hope to influence the debate over changing laws in the UK to allow for medical marijuana. Stewart was one of the key celebrity backers of the new research project, and revealed that two years ago in California he was prescribed medical marijuana to treat arthritis. Stewart told the UK’s Telegraph he regularly uses a marijuana-based ointment for his hands, as well as edibles, to treat pain.

Stewart says he uses marijuana ever day – but it’s medicinal

Shatner to Star in Romantic Comedy

William Shatner is set to star in the upcoming romantic comedy Senior Moment, according to Variety. Shatner will play a retired Navy fighter pilot and NASA test pilot who battles the law as his town seeks to get dangerous senior drivers off the road, resulting in his coveted convertible being impounded, and his license revoked. Shatner had this to say about the production, which begins shooting later this year: “I’m thrilled to be working with this group of talented people,” Shatner said. “I’m really looking forward to making a wonderfully funny movie.”

An Early Poster for “Senior Moment.”

Park Talks New Audiences Finding Enterprise and New Play

Star Trek: Enterprise’s Linda Park recently began starring in the classic play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof as Maggie at the Gindler Performing arts Center in Glendale, CA. To promote the play she has a new interview with the official Star Trek site where she talked a bit about how Enterprise is finding new audiences:

I’ve been meeting so many young children who’ve had Enterprise introduced to them by their parents. So, that’s been really exciting for me, to have young audiences get excited about the show and the work we did. We came on very late in that whole Star Trek run. We didn’t really get the promotion we should have. We never had a lot of eyes on us when we were on the air, so it’s nice to know that people are finding Enterprise now, all this time later. And there are people re-discovering it, too. Some of the fans maybe did give us a chance when we were on and they’ve gone back and realized it was really pretty good.

Park also discussed her role in the upcoming third season of Amazon’s Bosch, which has previously cast Trek alumni. Jeri Ryan had a large role in season two. Bosch‘s third season will begin airing on April 21st.

Park yesterday offered this photo preview (below) of her character Maggie in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof via Instagram.

Robert Picardo Will Record Your Voicemail Greeting If You Help Fund His New Play

Robert Picardo, Star Trek: Voyager’s Emergency Medical Hologram, has signed on to co-star in a new comedy play called “A Joke.” The production is trying to get enough money together to premiere at the Edinburgh Festival later this year. As with many crowdfunding projects, there is an abundance of possible rewards available. Picardo will record a custom ringtone or voicemail message for you for £50 (or about $63). More info on the play and possible funding rewards at danfreeman.co.uk.

Picardo was on hand at Toronto Comic Con over the weekend and NerdBastards has a con report from his panel. As is his custom, Picardo was also available for photos with fans, which he likes to share on Twitter with pithy comments, as demonstrated below.

Over the weekend, with sadness TrekMovie reported via Twitter and Facebook that actor Lawrence Montaigne had passed away in Las Vegas. Trek fans will know Montaigne from two classic Star Trek episodes, playing the Vulcan Stonn in “Amok Time,” and the Romulan Decius in “Balance of Terror.” He has also been a regular on the Trek convention circuit for years and even returned to the role of Stonn in the fan film Of Gods and Men. The news of Montaigne’s passing was first revealed by his daughter on Facebook, where friends, family, and fans have been offering their condolences. Fans can offer condolences on Lawrence’s own Facebook page as well.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/20/celeb-watch-sir-patrick-officially-a-legend-shatner-lands-senior-moment-and-more/feed/19Live From New York, It’s Chris Pine!https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/16/live-from-new-york-its-chris-pine/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/16/live-from-new-york-its-chris-pine/#commentsThu, 16 Mar 2017 19:57:48 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46577This afternoon NBC announced that Star Trek star Chris Pine will host Saturday Night Live in May, and the episode will be aired live coast to coast.

Chris Pine To Host Saturday Night Live in May

Today NBC revealed the hosts for the last four episodes of this season of Saturday Night Live, which is enjoying its best ratings in decades. The new list includes Star Trek’s Chris Pine taking the helm on May 6th. In addition they announced that for the first time in the show’s history, all four shows will be broadcast live simultaneously across the country.

Chris Pine revealed as one of SNL’s final four hosts of the season

Pine’s hosting gig is timed to build buzz for release of the Warner Bros. film Wonder Woman, which hits theaters on June 2nd. Pine, who co-stars with Gal Godot, is playing Steve Trevor, a World War I American pilot and love interest to Diana Prince (aka Wonder Woman). A new trailer for the movie was revealed last weekend at the Kids Choice Awards, where Pine and Godot appeared via video.

While this is his first time hosting, it won’t be Pine’s first time appearing on the show. In 2009, he and co-stars Zachary Quinto and Leonard Nimoy showed up during a “Weekend Update” segment to promote the release of J.J. Abrams’ first Star Trek movie.

Pine won’t be the first Kirk to captain SNL. William Shatner hosted the show in 1986, when he did his famous “Get a life!” sketch, and Star Trek: The Next Generation star Patrick Stewart hosted in 1994. SNL has made numerous references to Star Trek over the years, even without a Trek star hosting.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/16/live-from-new-york-its-chris-pine/feed/44Chase Masterson To Moderate Gender Gap Discussion at U.N.https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/16/chase-masterson-to-moderate-gender-gap-discussion-at-u-n/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/16/chase-masterson-to-moderate-gender-gap-discussion-at-u-n/#commentsThu, 16 Mar 2017 07:23:24 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46586Deep Space Nine‘s Leeta and founder of the Pop Culture Hero Coalition will address the United Nations Friday morning at their headquarters in New York to discuss the gender gap in the entertainment industry as part of the UN’s Commission on the Status of Women.

She’ll be moderating the panel, titled “Closing the Gender Gap in Entertainment: Systemic Social Change Through Media,” which will feature Women’s March National Co-Chair Carmen Perez, Teen Vogue Editor Lauren Duca, and UN Women’s Ravi Karkara. Masterson’s Pop Culture Hero Coalition, UN Women, Teen Vogue, and the Women’s March are all co-sponsors of the event.

Since her time on Deep Space Nine, Masterson has lead multiple efforts to further equality and the ideals of IDIC through her work with Homeboy Industries, a group that provides support to formerly gang-related and incarcerated youth, and the Pop Culture Hero Coalition, a group co-founded by Masterson that seeks to end bullying. Masterson says that Star Trek’s message of equality is part of what drives her passion for helping others.

“I have always been an advocate for women, but the integrity of Star Trek’s message of equality has resonated with me increasingly due to DS9,” she told StarTrek.com. “The future is a place of unremitting inclusivity. Let’s make that future start now.”

Chase Masterson as Leeta on Deep Space Nine

Masterson pointed out that as more women are hired to work in front of and behind the camera, the more women’s stories and perspectives will be told.

“This fact also doesn’t escape me: both as an employee of Quark’s, and then as the wife of a Ferengi, Leeta was never expected to speak out, or to have any strength or voice of her own.” Masterson said. “She was basically expected to exist in service to men, objectified. But she didn’t conform to those stereotypes. Originally, some people saw Chase in the same way. So, yeah, not bad, for a Dabo Girl.”

The panel will be streamed on Facebook live 10:30 am – 12 pm ET. Check out the Facebook event page.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/16/chase-masterson-to-moderate-gender-gap-discussion-at-u-n/feed/6Exclusive: George Takei Talks ‘Captain Sulu’ Series Idea, Trump And More At ‘New Frontiers’ Openinghttps://trekmovie.com/2017/03/13/exclusive-george-takei-talks-captain-sulu-series-idea-trump-and-more-at-new-frontiers-exhibit-opening/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/13/exclusive-george-takei-talks-captain-sulu-series-idea-trump-and-more-at-new-frontiers-exhibit-opening/#commentsMon, 13 Mar 2017 18:58:28 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46447Over the weekend the Japanese American Museum unveiled their new exhibit about the life of actor and activist George Takei. The original Sulu was on hand for the event and so was TrekMovie.com. We talked with Takei, took a lot of pictures of the exhibit, and got a video of Takei’s opening night speech.

Japanese American National Museum opening ‘New Frontiers’ exhibit all about George Takei

The new exhibit, open through August 20th, explores Takei’s life and career as an actor, activist, and social media icon. A curated selection of artifacts from Takei’s diverse experiences and achievements tells a story about the social history of America during his almost 80-year life.

George Takei speaking at the opening of the ‘New Frontiers’ Exhibit at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles on Saturday

On Saturday there was a gala event to open the exhibition. After Takei’s speech (which you can see below) TrekMovie had a brief moment to talk to him about the exhibit, Star Trek, and some more recent projects.

TrekMovie: You saw the display of your [Star Trek VI] captain’s chair and table and teacup, how did that make you feel?

George Takei: Nostalgic.

TM: Weren’t you trying to get a Captain Sulu show going? Weren’t you pitching that some time ago?

GT: I thought that was obvious from the way Star Trek VI ended. And the fans. I wasn’t pitching it; the fans were bombarding with a tidal wave of emails. But Paramount, they don’t hear.

TM: What would a Captain Sulu show be like? What kinds of stories did you envision?

GT: I am a hired actor. It’s up to the studio to determine how it’s going to be.

TM: We saw the Celebrity Apprentice autographed photo in the exhibit. What was it like working with Donald Trump?

GT: We were doing a press conference to promote the show. I knew Donald Trump had a position against marriage equality. That was an issue that I had been campaigning on. So with all the press there I thought I would get him on record. As a press conference was winding down I said, “Mr. Trump, I’d like to host you to lunch so that we can discuss marriage equality,” fully expecting him to demur, perhaps saying he had a full schedule and didn’t have the time. But, he surprised me. He said, “That might be interesting. I might learn something from you. So yeah, you’re on. Have your people call my people.” It took a long time, about three months, but we finally had that lunch. The first thing he said to me was, “You know what, George? I went to a friend’s gay wedding. It was beautiful. You gays do everything with such good taste.” [laughs] “You gays.”

Takei also confirmed that he is planning on taking his Broadway musical Allegiance on the road, noting it was his legacy. The tour will be doing shows in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and possibly Portland. There will be a new touring cast. but when asked if he will reprise his Broadway role he said yes, adding, “I said it’s my legacy!”

For now Takei said he was returning to New York this week to resume rehearsals for his starring role in the off-Broadway revival of the Stephen Sondheim musical “Pacific Overtures.” The play opens April 5th and tickets are on sale now at classicstage.org.

Costumes from Takei’s Broadway musical “Allegiance” on display at the Japanese American National Museum

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/13/exclusive-george-takei-talks-captain-sulu-series-idea-trump-and-more-at-new-frontiers-exhibit-opening/feed/106Watch Patrick Stewart Thank Star Trek Co-Stars For Long Life and Talk TNG Emmy Snubshttps://trekmovie.com/2017/03/09/watch-patrick-stewart-thank-star-trek-co-stars-for-long-life-and-talk-tng-emmy-snubs/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/09/watch-patrick-stewart-thank-star-trek-co-stars-for-long-life-and-talk-tng-emmy-snubs/#commentsFri, 10 Mar 2017 03:04:41 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=46384Star Trek: The Next Generation star said he has his TNG co-stars to thank for a long and more relaxed life, discusses how TNG was snubbed by the Emmys, shows off his French version of Picard and more.]]>In new interviews, the Star Trek: The Next Generation star said he has his TNG co-stars to thank for a long and more relaxed life, discusses how TNG was snubbed by the Emmys, shows off his French version of Picard and more.

Stewart: Star Trek co-stars made me live longer

Sir Patrick Stewart appeared on the TBS talk show Conan last night to promote his new film Logan, but host Conan O’Brien also delved into his history with Star Trek, asking him if it was true that when he started on The Next Generation he was "a little uptight." Stewart admitted it was true, saying he was "boring and tiresome" and didn’t like how "unruly" his fellow cast members were on set. However, the Sir Pat says the TNG cast taught him to relax and he feels it changed his life, noting he now wants to be the "silliest person on the set." Speaking of his more relaxed attitude, the 76-year-old actor noted:

It is all thanks to my pals on Star Trek who said "Patrick, come on. You’ll find you will enjoy the work more if you have fun. A few laughs every day. It will go quicker…and of course they were right and we had a great time. So thank you to all those guys. I think they made me live longer. I think I may not be here now if they had not taught me how to laugh more.

You can watch Sir Pat talk Star Trek on Conan below.

Stewart also revealed that he has started to become a foster parent for shelter dogs and even shared some adorable video of his new furry friend. Here’s one he posted on Instagram earlier today:

Stewart on TNG Emmy snubs, Sinatra being a fan, ‘French’ audition for TNG and more

Today Sir Stewart held a live chat with Variety which focused mostly on Logan, but the subject of Star Trek did come up. The actor has been getting a lot of buzz for his role in Logan, including some Oscar talk. When asked if he felt there is a problem with genre films getting their due respect during Award season, Stewart said he thinks there is and noted that he faced the same thing on Star Trek:

We experienced something very similar with Star Trek: The Next Generation. In the last season I was very fortunate to get a Screen Actors Guild nomination. That is the only creative award that series was nominated for – one award in seven years…people explained to me "it’s the genre, show’s like this are not taken seriously."…Although I look at the work of my colleagues – of Brent Spiner and Jonathan Frakes – outstanding award material it always seemed to me, but it didn’t happen. There was an albatross around the necks of projects like this where they were not taken seriously.

For the record Star Trek: The Next Generation was the most honored series in the franchise, with 58 Emmy nominations and 18 wins. Most of those are what you could consider technical categories such as Hairstyling, Makeup, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, Costumes and Visual Effects. However the show was also nominated for Music, Cinematography, Art Direction, and Editing. And in its final season the show was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series. Over its seven seasons TNG didn’t receive any Emmy nominations for acting, writing or directing.

On a side note, yesterday YahooTV had an article about how genre shows "deserved more Emmy love", which includes quotes from former Star Trek: TNG/DS9 writer Ronald D. Moore. Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski and Sleepy Hollow showrunner Albert Kim both specifically state Star Trek was snubbed by the Emmys.

More highlights from Stewart’s Variety Facebook Live chat:

When asked if he ever had any problems dealing with Star Trek or X-Men fans, Stewart spoke glowingly saying "can’t think of one bad experience."

On working with the late Anton Yelchin on the horror film Green Room, Stewart said he was a "dear man," but noted his time with him was limited due to how the film was shot with only one scene together so they didn’t have time to talk Star Trek.

When asked about dealing with Star Trek super-fan Tom Hanks, Stewart noted that Hanks could quote every episode and he was impressed how once when they were both at a party Tom was even able to recognize Rick Berman.

However, Stewart noted (apologizing to Hanks) he learned during the shooting of Star Trek: The Next Generation (through TNG hairstylist Joy Zapata) that the late great singer Frank Sinatra was a big fan and "never missed an episode."

Stewart recalled how his final audition with Paramount execs for the role of Jean Luc Picard came with a last-minute request for him to do it in a wig, which he had to have flown in from London. He also noted that somewhere in the "vault" at Paramount is film of that audition, including him trying out a French accent. He then demonstrated with some Gallic "Space, the final frontier."

Watch the full interview below. (the bit where Stewart talks of his TNG audition is at 33:30).

Will Stewart return to the role of Professor X?

While it has been reported that Logan will be his final time playing Professor X, maybe it won’t be. Appearing on The Late Late Show with James Cordon earlier this week, Stewart hinted that it could be possible (but it wasn’t for him to say) for him to reprise the role in a future Deadpool movie. And as it happens, also appearing on the same show and sitting on the same couch was actor Dan Stevens who stars in FX’s new X-Men TV series, Legion. Stevens said he had a job offer for Stewart to appear on the show and Sir Patrick exclaimed he was "absolutely" interested.

Sir Patrick Stewart is facepalming again, Alexander Siddig is leading a shadowy league, William Shatner is dancing the can-can and Chris Pine and J.J. Abrams are awarding Zachary Quinto. See all that and more in our latest Star Trek ‘CelebWatch’ update.

Patrick Stewart and Whoopi Goldberg Watch TNG Bloopers

Star Trek: The Next Generation star Sir Patrick Stewart has been doing the rounds publicizing what he has said will be his final time playing Charles Xavier in the new X-Men series film Logan, which opened this weekend. One of his more entertaining interviews was on The View, where he was reunited with his TNG co-star Whoopi Goldberg. In between talking about Logan, his upcoming role voicing “Poop” for The Emoji Movie and his recent GQ fashion shoot, Goldberg and Stewart shared a delightful moment watching some Next Gen bloopers. And while watching the bloopers Sir Pat recreated his famous facepalm meme, watch it below.

The folks at The View also had a bit of fun with this behind-the-scenes video of a producer who was a bit too excited to meet his favorite captain:

Alexander Siddig Headed To Gotham, Alice Eve To Lead Pilot For CBS Sitcom

It was reported this week that Star Trek: Deep Space Nine star Alexander Siddig is headed to yet another genre show, this time into the DC Universe. Siddig has been cast in the role of Ra’s al Ghul in FOX’s Batman prequel series Gotham. Alexander joins some illustrious actors who have played the mysterious leader of the League of Shadows in the last decade: Matt Nable on Arrow and Liam Neeson in the Christopher Nolan Batman films. Look for Siddig later in the season; Gotham returns to FOX on April 24.

Siddig to play Ra’s Al Ghul in “Gotham”

In other casting news, Alice Eve (Carol Marcus in Star Trek: Into Darkness) has been tapped for the title role in a new CBS comedy pilotHannah Royce’s Questionable Choices, created by Matt Tarses (Mad Love). According to Deadline, Eve will be playing a nurse who is “a bit of a train wreck” with a family that includes three kids from three different dads.

J.J. Abrams Hosts Oscar Wilde Awards Honoring Zachary Quinto

On Oscar weekend, Star Trek producer/director J.J. Abrams opened up his Bad Robot offices in Santa Monica to host the annual Oscar Wilde Awards, and also acted as emcee. One of the honorees this year was Zachary Quinto, whose award was presented by his Star Trek co-star Chris Pine; also on hand was another co-star, John Cho. See below for a slideshow from the event (via Getty Images).

Last night William Shatner was in Las Vegas for the One Night For One Drop charity event with Cirque du Soleil. The One Drop charity brings sustainable clean drinking water to communities around the world. Here is a little taste of what you missed. (Video courtesy of John Katslimotes/YouTube).

Celeb Tweet of the Week: Robert Picardo Has Fond Memories of His Co-Star

That’s it for Trek Celeb news for the week. Stay tuned for more updates on the stars of Star Trek.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/03/04/watch-patrick-stewart-facepalm-watching-tng-bloopers-w-whoopi-siddig-to-gotham-more/feed/37WATCH: Doug Jones Talks “Star Trek: Discovery”, How To Pronounce ‘Lt. Saru’https://trekmovie.com/2017/01/07/watch-doug-jones-talks-star-trek-discovery-how-to-pronounce-lt-saru/
https://trekmovie.com/2017/01/07/watch-doug-jones-talks-star-trek-discovery-how-to-pronounce-lt-saru/#commentsSat, 07 Jan 2017 21:17:42 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=45866With the premiere of Star Trek: Discovery only a few months away and filming to start later this month, we get our first interview with Doug Jones on the new alien character of Lt. Saru.

As the show hasn’t even begun filming yet (filming should start later this month, according to Jones), there is not much to be said about what Discovery will bring.

“I don’t know much!” said Jones of Discovery. Still, it’s exciting to see a member of our newest Star Trek family talking about the show and his previous knowledge of the Trek universe.

“What I can tell you is what’s already been out there. I am a new breed of alien that you’ve never seen on the series before, or in any of the movies, which I’m tickled pink about. That I get to, from the ground up, help develop and find this character, and this species, and what we’re all about… This is a whole new thing that we get to discover together, which I’m really excited about.”

One new piece of information we did get, however, is the correct pronunciation of the character’s name. Lt. Saru is pronounced “suh-roo” (emphasis on the roo).

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2017/01/07/watch-doug-jones-talks-star-trek-discovery-how-to-pronounce-lt-saru/feed/103Trek Stars Team Up To Fight Bullying in “Be Kind” Campaignhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/12/28/trek-stars-team-up-to-fight-bullying-in-be-kind-campaign/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/12/28/trek-stars-team-up-to-fight-bullying-in-be-kind-campaign/#commentsWed, 28 Dec 2016 21:39:44 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=45827This year, the Pop Culture Hero Coalition, an anti-bullying non-profit founded by Chase Masterson (Leeta, DS9), has teamed up with Star Trek stars who ask that you start 2017 with a resolution to Be Kind to one another. You can join the fight and be a real life hero by pledging to be kind, and you can do it in style with a Be Kind tee shirt.

William Shatner wants you to Be Kind

“Think before you type. Start 2017 with the resolution to #BeKind,” reads the description for one of the Pop Culture Hero Coalition’s holiday fundraiser tee shirts.

Star Trek, like other modern pop culture franchises, is at its core a message to understand one another, embrace diversity, and overall be excellent to each other. Chase Masterson, the coalition’s founder, saw this as an opportunity to create the first-ever organization that uses the universal appeal of comics, film & TV to create anti-bullying programs at pop culture events, and in schools and communities.

Their mission is simple:

To educate and support children, teens and adults to overcome bullying and social injustice, and to transform their struggles into strengths, using stories and characters from pop culture TV, film, and comics.

They do this by hosting events, organizing convention panels, and even developing lesson plans for schools. They’ve had huge successes helping kids affected by the San Bernardino mass shooting, those suffering from PTSD and bullying and inner city kids in places like Chicago. Currently, they are working to teach Trek’s ideal of Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations (IDIC) in schools.

Terry Farrell, Chase Masterson, and Nana Visitor spread the good word: Be Kind!

“We love our onscreen heroes. Why not be heroes, too? So many people have told us, ‘I wish you had this when I was in school.’” says Masterson. “Roddenberry created a powerful key to social justice, and we are continuing that work in real life. We have the opportunity to teach IDIC to kids, before it’s too late… before there are any more suicides, or broken hearts, or battered psyches due to bullying — and we truly appreciate your support in this crucial work”

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/12/28/trek-stars-team-up-to-fight-bullying-in-be-kind-campaign/feed/17WATCH: Star Trek Stars Celebrate National Aircraft Carrier Monthhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/11/20/watch-star-trek-stars-celebrate-national-aircraft-carrier-month/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/11/20/watch-star-trek-stars-celebrate-national-aircraft-carrier-month/#commentsMon, 21 Nov 2016 00:13:15 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=45540From rank titles to Starfleet operations to ships named Enterprise, Star Trek has been heavily inspired by Naval traditions. In celebration of this November as National Aircraft Carrier Month, we gathered together some of Trek’s finest in a tribute to the US Navy and the men and women who serve and to make sure that history never forgets the name Enterprise.

With a new real life aircraft carrier named USS Enterprise and a new Star Trek television series both in the pipeline, Trek and the Navy are both continuing its celebration of Naval traditions and visions for the future. What better time than now, during National Aircraft Carrier Month, to reflect on the role the Navy and its traditions have had on our favorite franchise.

Rod Roddenberry (son of Gene Roddenberry and Executive Producer of Star Trek: Discovery), Ronald D. Moore (writer/director The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine), Tim Russ (Tuvok from Voyager), and Scott Bakula (Captain Archer of the Enterprise NX-01 in Star Trek: Enterprise) each gave their unique perspectives on how the Navy has shaped Star Trek and the hope that one day, maybe one day soon, we will break our Earthly bonds and expand our exploration into the solar system and beyond.

History will never forget the name Enterprise
Stretching all the way back to 1775, before the United States was even a country, there have been eight US Naval ships named Enterprise. The ninth, the Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN-80), was announced in 2012 and is scheduled to start its oceanic voyage in 2025.

The British Navy had ships named HMS Enterprise as early as 1705, which can be seen in the opening credits of Star Trek: Enterprise.

The name itself has a long and storied tradition, but other naval cues have found their way into Trek lore. Other Starfleet ships (and space stations) have been named for naval vessels as recently as Star Trek Beyond‘s Starbase Yorktown. And, of course, the structure of Starfleet, right down to rank titles and procedures, are based on those of the United States Navy.

The Battlestar Galactica reboot, which was created writer/producer Trek vet Ronald D. Moore, looked to naval aviation in great detail to model the flight and operations of the show’s Viper spacecraft.

The fictional USS Discovery, scheduled to make its on screen debut in May of 2017 in Star Trek: Discovery, has namesakes in both the British and Canadian Navies and will no doubt continue to celebrate Star Trek’s naval heritage.

On this November 2016, we at TrekMovie want to wish the US Navy and the men and women who serve this country a very happy National Aircraft Carrier Month. Live long and prosper.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/11/20/watch-star-trek-stars-celebrate-national-aircraft-carrier-month/feed/56Simon Pegg: Krall ‘utterly mirrors Donald Trump’https://trekmovie.com/2016/11/07/simon-pegg-krall-utterly-mirrors-donald-trump/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/11/07/simon-pegg-krall-utterly-mirrors-donald-trump/#commentsMon, 07 Nov 2016 15:00:44 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=43827Simon Pegg, co-writer and co-star of Star Trek Beyond spoke with Entertainment Weekly recently about writing the film’s villain, Krall, comparing him to the Republican presidential candidate in the United States. He also talks about Star Trek’s “heart”, a deleted scene with a nod to Lieutenant Romaine, and the possibility of a fourth Kelvin film.

When asked about writing Star Trek Beyond‘s villain, Krall, and the character’s backstory, Simon Pegg told EW that he and co-writer Doug Jung attempted to create a character that was relatable and complex but also had gone “a little mad”.

We liked the idea of someone being a little mad, and feeling passed over and forgotten. Someone with a terrible ego complex. It’s incredible to me how — and I would pat myself and Doug on the back endlessly for this — how Krall kind of utterly mirrors Donald Trump. You know, this sort of utterly fragile ego that’s projecting all of his own faults onto other people.

But, Krall parallels political figures in Pegg’s home country of the United Kingdom as well, including one Boris Johnson.

Brexit, absolutely! What it is with Krall is: I don’t know if he necessarily believes in what he’s saying. Krall is just kind of angry, you know? He was a soldier, he fought in wars, he lost a lot of people, suddenly he’s got to break bread with the enemy…

He looks at the Federation in the same way that the right tend to take leftist ideas and just say they’re “bad.” Things like political correctness, which is just really not being a c–t, that’s all you’ve really got to do, don’t be an a–hole. That’s all it is! They say, oh no, political correctness, that’s bad.

While the film was written before Donald Trump took the to the political stage (and, so, Krall was not actually based on the real life real estate mogul), Pegg and Jung did try to tie real world politics into their story.

We took the standpoint that Star Trek has always been socially allegorical and politically allegorical: “Let’s mirror things that are happening in our culture.” That was something that was really important to us. We were looking at this notion of separatism versus integration and how, at the moment, there seems to be this pull away from this notion of global citizenship.

On Scotty’s love interests, EW notes that Scotty and Uhura had some chemistry in Star Trek: The Final Frontier and asked Pegg whether that pairing was something we might get to see in the Kelvin timeline.

As a co-writer of the film, if I’d written myself any kind of romantic interest with Zoe Saldana, I’d have been thoroughly hauled across the coals! We did have a little reference, in a deleted scene on the DVD, where Scotty talks about going out for a drink with Lieutenant Romaine, and that’s a character from the original series that Scotty was romantically linked to.

Finally, Pegg was asked about the thing on everyone’s minds since Beyond left the big screen: will there be a fourth film? Perhaps the one co-starring Chris Hemsworth (who played Captain Kirk’s father George in 2009) that J.J. Abrams was promising before Beyond even hit theaters?

It’s become a bit bittersweet, really, because we lost Anton tragically, and that’s deeply affected all of us. It’s going to be so difficult to do it again without him, but we’ve become so close over the years, and even moreso now. J.J. is J.J. He’s very secretive, and I think that this is something he was kind of cooking up, or has been cooking up for a while story-wise. I don’t know anything about it. I’m intrigued!

Personally, I feel like I’m fascinated to find out. It would be interesting with Kirk, now that he seems to have got past his daddy issues, you know, come to a good place psychologically in terms of his relationship with his dad. I can only imagine how it will be to suddenly have to face him.

There’s a lot more great stuff in the original interview. Be sure to head over to Entertainment Weekly to read the whole thing.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/11/07/simon-pegg-krall-utterly-mirrors-donald-trump/feed/324William Shatner Shines in Brief “Shatner’s World” Tourhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/11/06/william-shatner-shines-in-brief-shatners-world-tour/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/11/06/william-shatner-shines-in-brief-shatners-world-tour/#commentsSun, 06 Nov 2016 15:00:35 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=43716William Shatner still has it. The 85 year-old actor entertained fans in suburban Philadelphia for two-straight hours in the most recent return of his self-titled tour that covered his life and career. It’s “Shatner’s World”, we just live in it.

Exuberant. Enthusiastic. Entertaining. William Shatner returned to the road on October 13 for a quick five-day tour of his popular Shatner’s World and did not disappoint the 900-plus fans in attendance at the Keswick Theater in Glenside, PA. Amusing attendees with anecdotes from his seven-decades long career, Shatner’s one-man show was at times irreverent, poignant, humorous, but most of all, fun.

There might not be another performer who can better entertain a crowd than the Canadian actor, who has had four-decades to hone his onstage persona, as he charmed his audience for two hours without an intermission. Shatner intermixed personal stories about his family, acting and recording career as well as reflected on his life, often beginning with quiet moments before reaching a crescendo in voice and energy.

Updating his material for the current presidential election in the United States, Shatner gleefully had fun with his audience, his cheeky style coming across throughout. His quick wit was demonstrated when he almost fell over his self-described “co-chair” for the performance, which was the actual chair he sat in for portions of the show.

Thanks to a series of audio and video clips, audience members were treated to an interesting mix of moments he chose from his life and career, including Star Trek, Boston Legal and his interactions with NASA. One of the big crowd pleasers of the evening was photos of him as a young actor just starting out in the theater; he drew “oohs” and “ahhs” whenever a cheesecake picture appeared, like his role as a shirtless Alexander the Great.

Photo Courtesy of New York Times

Mortality crept into his discussion at one point – a topic he has mused on over the decades, perhaps taking on even more weight in the wake of last year’s loss of close friend Leonard Nimoy. Shatner never spoke directly about Nimoy and DeForest Kelley, his cherished mates from his decades-long career in the final frontier, but he did honor their relationship with an image of the three of them when he mentioned the friendships forged during his time on Star Trek.

Death and life came up again when Shatner touched on his late-wife Nerine’s passing, and how that tragedy led him to meeting his current-spouse, Elizabeth. It was a meaningful moment for Shatner, who was mostly self-deprecating (opening the show with George Takei’s famous roast dialogue about riding in on a horse), as the octogenarian mentioned the date, year, and exact time he found out about Nerine’s death before segueing into his life with Elizabeth, with whom he bonded over grief (she had recently lost her husband after battling an illness) and their mutual love of horses.

Star Trek fans made up a significant portion of the audience, identifiable by various T-shirts and pins, while the rest of the seats seemed filled by the theater’s subscribers. It was a mid-week show, but the house was filled almost to capacity, which was a nice nod to the breadth of Shatner’s career. One audience member remarked that he was not a Star Trek fan, but knew the actor always put on an entertaining show. It was that kind of night.

In a story that perfectly captured the essence of both the actor and the man, Shatner described filming a movie in the southern United States, where each evening he and his co-stars were heckled by the same local. After several nights, Shatner approached the man and offered him a job on the crew, which resulted in the cast and crew embracing the heckler, as well as he becoming a champion for them. It was a touching story that truly exemplified his charisma with people. However, in typical Shatner fashion, he then ended the story with how he set the man’s car on fire and destroyed his lucky chaps.

Star Trek convention-goers who have seen Shatner on stage over the years should make a point to catch his show when the opportunity arises, as Shatner’s World (launched in 2012, and running whenever the actor’s schedule allows) is so much more than his quick routine and Q&A from those events. Shatner received a standing ovation after wrapping up his night singing/speaking his Brad Paisley duet, Real; anyone in attendance would agree that they’d be lucky indeed to have his energy and sharp mind at 85.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/11/06/william-shatner-shines-in-brief-shatners-world-tour/feed/28In Photos: Star Trek Beyond Mexico Premierehttps://trekmovie.com/2016/09/17/in-photos-star-trek-beyond-mexico-premiere/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/09/17/in-photos-star-trek-beyond-mexico-premiere/#commentsSat, 17 Sep 2016 20:00:37 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=43454Star Trek Sin Límites, as Star Trek Beyond is known in Spanish, premiered in Mexico earlier this month. Stars Simon Pegg and Zoe Saldana were on hand to talk about the new film and answer questions from the press. TrekMovie was there and brings you this report in photos.

We got an early press screening and even got to wear these cool glasses

The lobby was decorated with Star Trek displays

Stars Simon Pegg and Zoe Saldana pose for photos

Simon and Zoe take questions from the press

The press set up for the Red Carpet

Star Trek Sin Límites is in theaters now in Mexico!

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/09/17/in-photos-star-trek-beyond-mexico-premiere/feed/68‘The Circuit’ Takes Fictional Look at Life On The Road for Con Guests and Attendeeshttps://trekmovie.com/2016/09/17/the-circuit-takes-fictional-look-at-life-on-the-road-for-con-guests-and-attendees/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/09/17/the-circuit-takes-fictional-look-at-life-on-the-road-for-con-guests-and-attendees/#commentsSat, 17 Sep 2016 14:00:08 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=43469The Star Trek: Voyager actor Manu Intiraymi has been mulling the idea of a series about the convention circuit for 15 years. TrekMovie interviewed Intiraymi about his new film venture, which includes a host of actors from Star Trek and other sci-fi franchises.

Lonely can be the road well traveled for celebrity convention guests, who cross the nation and the globe virtually every weekend of the year to connect with pop culture fans. Leaving behind family, friends and loved ones to sit in airports, hotels and exhibition centers, fellow convention circuit guests often become close friends. These travelers and their stories from the road inspired former Star Trek: Voyager actor Manu Intiraymi to conceive a 10-story multi-genre anthology film, The Circuit, about the fictional comings and goings of his colleagues, as well as attendees, over the course of a one-weekend convention.

“It’s the Twilight Zone meets Galaxy Quest meets Fanboys,” Intiraymi explained in his concept’s elevator pitch for this interview. “Each story in the anthology will take place in one genre, like horror, fantasy, sci-fi and romance, and like New York Stories, all films in the anthology will happen during one weekend of a pop culture convention.

The Circuit will celebrate 50 years of conventions and our love of genre filmmaking. All of these stories will take place where we go to celebrate them, whether they occur in the past, present or future. The Circuit is a superstar team-up of actors, directors, writers, producers, visual effects artists and more. The cast and crew hail from indie and mainstream successes like For The Love of Spock, Renegades, Fifth Passenger, Planes, and Iron Man as well as television shows like Arrow, Flash, and D.C.’s Legends of Tomorrow.”

Intiraymi, whose last name means festival of the sun in Peruvian, is understandably enthusiastic about his idea. More impressive is his fresh approach to the annual treks fans take to their geek meccas, sometimes even multiple times in one year. His idea is intriguing in that The Circuit is not a documentary like William Shatner’s Get a Life, which follows real fans and actors who tell their Star Trek convention tales. No, The Circuit is 10-fictional separate-stories which draw inspiration from the celebrities and the fans who go to meet them.

Initially conceived 15 years ago when he began the convention tour himself, his preliminary thought was to include only stories from the perspective of the convention guests. However, Intiraymi, who executive produces as well as acts in The Circuit, was inspired to include convention attendees after experiencing the fans point of view and their testimonies.

“Ever since I started doing them, I noticed how surreal, heartbreaking, sad, beautiful, functional and dysfunctional they can be for the fans,” Intiraymi explained. “I saw so many things behind-the-scenes over the years. I felt like there had to be an anthology film for fans to see.

Last year at Fed Con in Germany, I was looking out at the fans, 7,500 people clapping, and I started making eye contact with them. They shared their stories how these cons have helped them, and that is when I realized half of the stories had to be from the fans point of view. So I had my Hollywood writer friends interview the cast and tell half the stories from the actor’s perspective, while I opened up a screenplay contest so the other half of the stories could come from the fanbase.”

Casting a wide net for peer stories and creators, as well as actors and more, Intiraymi had easy access to attendees he has shared the stage with over the years. It’s reminiscent how Star Trek Continues’ Vic Mignogna selects his actors, reaching out to those in which he has worked with professionally or met on the convention circuit over the years. For Mignogna, and now Intiraymi, these individuals are now a part of their extended family.

Tapping into an unlimited number of actors from his time in the Final Frontier, Star Trek fans can expect to see familiar faces, not just from Voyager, but all recent sequels set in Gene Roddenberry’s fictional world. However actors will also come from other beloved programs and films as well.

Endeavors like this do not just materialize without the almighty dollar. While Federation citizens in the 24th century do not need gold-pressed latinum to pursue their dreams, unfortunately today money is still needed to make these types of projects occur. Producing the film via his own Intiraymi Films, Boston Dutch Productions as well as Mike Phillips and Jason Neufeld’s Bayou Pictures, the former Voyager actor still wants to keep as much creative control as he can. Thus, he has decided to go the crowdfunding route, which sadly is no longer as reliable as it once was thanks to one Star Trek fan film.

Concerns over this issue are not something Intiraymi worries about however, as he is quick to point out that while his background as well as some of his actors are from Star Trek, The Circuit is not a Star Trek fan film. He is quick to note that while a bulk of his actors do come from the franchise, they also come from other properties like Game of Thrones, Teen Wolf, The Blacklist, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Hellboy, to name a few.

Realistic that he might not reach his financial goal, Intiraymi is prepared to go to other production companies for the balance, or only shoot the number of episodes for the anthology they can afford based on money raised.

“We would love it to be crowd funded in the first campaign, but we’re willing to do whatever it takes to raise the $1.3 million to do it right, whether it’s additional campaigns or matching funds. For the first three episodes, we are looking to raise $400k to pay actors, making these concepts, flying fans in, plus shooting in different locations as well as filming an original fan screenplay from the contest. Since it’s an anthology, if we don’t raise enough money, we’ll shoot how many we can get out. The toughest part of raising money for a film is that first chunk.

The Circuit is a film that celebrates conventions, and is made for the fans. This is its own original concept, during the film you will never see Star Trek or Star Wars characters and we’re not going to take any intellectual property characters ala Galaxy Quest. We may infer, but it will not be directly.”

Manu Intiraymi hopes Kickstarter can help rake in the funding

Crowdfunding begins soon, as a Kickstarter for the The Circuit is slated to launch September 20. Leading up to the start, Intiraymi and crew have produced a series of videos to be released each week prior to its commencement, ending with the long version trailer of the movie.

“Even if fans don’t support the campaign monetarily, they should still enjoy watching a new trailer each week on the fundraising site.”

Speaking of fans, The Circuit presents a unique opportunity for those looking to break into the business of filmmaking and storytelling. Intiraymi, who plans to become a pitchman on steroids during his future convention appearances, is offering fans more than just a chance at having their original fictional stories told. He is also presenting his Kickstarter donors the shot to actually intern on set during production and filming.

“I want to make the most collaborative, celebrity/fan anthology that Hollywood has ever done. Anyone who supports the Kickstarter at any donation level, will be able to send a resume to info@thecircuitfilm.com and submit why they should be brought into one of the key departments in each episode, including makeup, effects, set design, writing, acting, etc.

For every episode of the anthology, The Circuit will bring multiple fans into the filmmaking process, and help them get their foot in the door.”

The recent Star Trek Mission New York included The Circuit cast members Armin Shimerman and Robert Beltran among others. The teaser trailer can be seen TheCircuitFilm.com or by following @TheCircuitMovie on all social media.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/09/17/the-circuit-takes-fictional-look-at-life-on-the-road-for-con-guests-and-attendees/feed/4TrekMovie Interview: Denise Crosbyhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/09/07/trekmovie-interview-denise-crosby/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/09/07/trekmovie-interview-denise-crosby/#commentsWed, 07 Sep 2016 19:40:45 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=43351We got a few minutes with Denise Crosby at the Star Trek Online booth at Missions New York last weekend. She’s now providing the voice for Sela in the game, which recently made the leap into PS4s and Xbox Ones. Once we had her, we couldn’t resist asking her a few other questions, too.

Tell us how you first got involved with the Star Trek Online Game. Did you already know about it?

You know, it was fans who were telling me that. “Do you know about Star Trek Online?” And I said, “Well, I’d kind of heard about it.” And they said, “They’re going to introduce the character of Sela.” I said, “They are???”

“Yeah, you should do the voice.” So I started to—I was at a convention in San Francisco, and another fan asked, “Are you going to be in Star Trek Online?” I said, “Well, I don’t know, I’ve got to find out who’s doing it, and nobody can do the voice of Sela except me!”

And then Al, one of the creators of Star Trek Online, was in the audience, and he said, “Um, Miss Crosby, hi, I’m the creator of Star Trek Online.” And I went, “Oh my god! I need to talk to you!” And he said, “We’d love to have you.” And that’s how it began.

Leonard Nimoy was the first actor who came on board, but in terms of an actual characters who appears in the game that we know, you were the first, and you paved the way for all these other actors. Trailblazer!

Once again! And I knew that that’s generally how it happens. One of us kind of tests the water, and then we can go back and tell everybody, “Yeah, it’s okay, you can do it. They’re good.”

Do you play any of these games?

I have a son, and he’s 18 now, but when he was growing up, we got him an Xbox. He played mainly sports games, but he got into some sort of shoot-em-up thing. So I said, “Show me how this thing works.” And he goes, “Okay mom, so this is the controller, and this makes him go, and this makes him shoot.” So I’m going, “Okay, let’s do it.” And he goes, “Okay Mom. Shoot him!” And I’m going, “Shoot what?” “Shoot the guy! He’s going to—oh Mom. He killed you already!”

I was banned from the game room.

He said, “You are hopeless,” and I said, “Well I don’t know what I’m doing here.” So I never played again.

But on my phone, I’ll tell you a secret, I have a Pac-Man app. I’m a big Pac-Man fan. I’m old school.

So after after you left TNG, you came back for “Yesterday’s Enterprise,” then “Redemption,” then “Unification,” then “All Good Things…,” and here you are again on Star Trek Online…

I’m like the [Hydra], you just keep cutting off its head and I grow a new one.

How do you feel about your legacy on Star Trek now, given the development of Tasha in the alternate universe, and Sela? We know all the reasons you left and they make total sense, but that role was SO important for women watching that show. Just seeing you on the bridge really made a difference.

I really get that, you know, now. Thirty years out. You know, you don’t see it in the time. I inherently knew that it was important, but they were not doing anything with it, and that was so frustrating. So it was like, guys, you have an opportunity here. It’s not just enough to go, “Oh, make the security officer a woman.” Okay, we got that, now what are you going to do here? And I think the first season was just a big mess. It was just like, let’s throw a bunch of stuff up, and see where it lands.

But to have been able to continue in it was a complete surprise to me. “Yesterday’s Enterprise,” when I got that script, and read it, it was like wow, the irony that I had to die to get the best script that I’d seen on the show was incredible. And I never saw that coming. When I died on Star Trek, Gene said, “I hate to do it, because you’ll never come back.”

Michael Piller didn’t think so. Really, anyone can come back!

Exactly! Now when I do a show, and they say, “Do you think you’ll come back?” I say, “Star Trek taught me to never say never. Okay?” Anything’s possible. And TV’s changing so much, anything can happen.

Are there any shows on the air right now that you would really love to be a part of?

Oh yeah. I would really love to be a part of Homeland. I just think that’s a tremendous show. I love it. It’s my appetite for stuff, the writing … I could play a diplomat or I could play some spy or something. Let’s just put that out there.

Are there other female characters out there that you think have that strength, like Tasha? Do you see this trend in TV continuing, with women in these strong roles?

I think the possibilities are there. Certainly, speaking of Homeland, that is a character that has incredible dimensions and depth and strength, obviously. There are women in shows about politics, even the comedies that are female-centric, that’s available now. It continues to evolve.

In terms of Star Trek: Discovery, we’re all thinking there’s a way to get you in there. Have you thought about that?

You know, it’s certainly possible. I think—are they going even further back?

Ten years before Kirk takes over the Enterprise, that’s the basic timeline.

Anything, again, anything is possible. I love Bryan Fuller. I’ve been a big fan of his work. I love Pushing Daisies, and one of the people who worked on Trekkies, Scott Nimerfro, who has passed away, he was about to write on that show. He and Bryan went back to Pushing Daisies and Scott was really close to me. So I don’t rule anything out. He spoke with my partner, Roger Nygard, who directed Trekkies, Bryan and Roger spoke about sitting down and talking with him, we have an idea for Trekkies 3 that we’d like to do, interview and talk to the new generation of Star Trek, and complete our trilogy. So Bryan would really love to do that. And CBS, we have to kind of dance with a little bit. We have a game plan. So it’d be great. I would love it. I think the fans would love it to be that.

You can be your own ancestor.

I know! There’s a lot of possibilities. I’ll see if I can nudge him that way.

Expletives have been something added to further the humor of Star Trek films since Captain Kirk’s “double dumb-ass on you” in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Brent Spiner’s Data took it one step further in Star Trek: Generations and of course the JJ screenwriters have embraced the concept of colorful metaphors to an entirely new level. But Sofia Boutella’s “holy shit” moment came when she was actually cast as Jaylah in Star Trek Beyond, according to a new article in the August edition of Empire Magazine.

“It wasn’t until the callback that they told me it was Star Trek, and what character I was playing. Then they took me to the make-up trailer and said, ‘This is what you’re going to look like.’ And I was like, ‘Holy shit.’”

A dancer since the age of five, Boutella has revealed herself to movie audiences in two defining pop culture roles recently, first as the assassin Gazelle in Matthew Vaughn’s The Kingsman and of course this summer as Jaylah. Establishing a new character in a fifty-year franchise that has seen its fair share of amazing new life portrayed by talented actors is nothing to sneeze at, however Star Trek Beyond Director Justin Lin explained the potential rewards of Jaylah, as well as casting the actress in the role.

“I knew if we did it right,” Lin told Empire, “it would be great to have a new character who could potentially join the family.

“I knew as soon as I saw her,” he said. “Usually when you’re writing you try to find someone to fit [what you’ve written], but I started crafting the character to Sofia’s strengths. I wanted someone who when you meet them has this strength, but you realise it might be a mask.”

More fascinating nuggets from the article include Boutella’s dancing background, staying away from the temptation of easy money, as well as her familiarity with Star Trek and packing for her audition. She has been cast in the latest Mummy remake, as the Mummy, starring alongside Tom Cruise. With the potential of Jaylah appearing in future Star Trek films according to Lin, it appears Sofia Boutella will be sticking around for a bit, much the benefit of filmgoers and Star Trek fans.

“To be honest, I’m not very familiar [with Star Trek]. I saw the two films of the new franchise but I didn’t grow up watching it. It’s the same with Star Wars; it just wasn’t a part of me growing up. I wasn’t geeking on it to be honest.”

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/08/25/sofia-boutella-talks-star-trek-beyond-in-latest-empire-magazine/feed/19In One Of His Final Interviews, Anton Yelchin Talks Rachmaninov, Nazis, and Trekhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/07/07/in-one-of-his-final-interviews-anton-yelchin-talks-rachmaninov-nazis-and-trek/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/07/07/in-one-of-his-final-interviews-anton-yelchin-talks-rachmaninov-nazis-and-trek/#commentsThu, 07 Jul 2016 14:25:23 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42329Last year, when he was Anton Yelchin was promoting the movie Green Room at the Cannes film festival, he gave an interview to writer John Bleasdale that seems especially poignant now. It gives great insight into Yelchin’s background, his goals, and his appreciation for the franchise that was so fun for him to be a part of.

“There are certain things about the Russian culture and the Russian ethos that I can relate to. It’s an overabundance of emotion.”

Bleasdale only spent 20 minutes with him, but he describes them as “optimistic” and very much enjoyed the company of Yelchin, a “charming and confident young man.”

When they met, Yelchin’s voice was a little raw from a late night party, where he’d been celebrating Green Room. He told Bleasdale that working with Patrick Stewart was very inspiring, not in terms of Star Trek specifically, but in terms of how Stewart carries himself, and what his values are. Plus, both actors are fans of Russian novels. Yelchin came by that one naturally, of course; he was born in Leningrad, then was raised in the U.S. He was proud of his heritage, and loved a good Dostoevsky novel, films by Tarkovsky, and cited Rachmaninov as one of his favorite composers.

His parents were figure skaters, and wanted him to go into sports as well, but he knew by age 9 that acting was what he wanted to do. When his parents saw what a terrible athlete he was, they got the message. In addition to being an actor, Yelchin was also a musician. He used to play in a punk band called the Hammerheads, with Tom Petty’s son, and was a big fan of thrash and hardcore. His music appreciation went beyond that too, as he admitted his love for B.B. King and Ray Charles.

He told Bleasdale that it was hard spending all that time with Nazi paraphernalia on set during the shoot for Green Room, but was proud of the film, and felt that it was really important to look at the historical and ideological roots of the beliefs behind them, to truly understand them.
Yelchin was enthusiastic about all the movies he was making, from a movie produced by indie filmmaker Jim Jarmusch on a tiny budget to the Star Trek franchise. He loved his Trek co-stars, and said that they made the whole thing worthwhile.

Yelchin became most enthused about the Star Trek franchise not when he spoke of the technical training he had absorbed just being on set. “It’s a good group of people. I’d feel differently if it wasn’t. If it wasn’t JJ [Abrams], I’d probably be less inclined to feel that way but I still think everything is something you learn from, even if it sucks. Especially if it sucks.”

Sadly, he was about to direct his first movie, called Travis, when he died, but he will still leave us with a legacy. He has five more movies (including Star Trek Beyond) that have yet to come out.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/07/07/in-one-of-his-final-interviews-anton-yelchin-talks-rachmaninov-nazis-and-trek/feed/8Zachary Quinto and Simon Pegg Talk About The Impact of Losing Anton Yelchinhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/07/05/zachary-quinto-and-simon-pegg-talk-about-the-impact-of-losing-anton-yelchin/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/07/05/zachary-quinto-and-simon-pegg-talk-about-the-impact-of-losing-anton-yelchin/#commentsTue, 05 Jul 2016 18:30:33 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42310Both Zachary Quinto and Simon Pegg have been finding it difficult to talk about Anton Yelchin this week, as they do the rounds promoting Star Trek Beyond.

One thing many of the Star Trek incarnations have in common is the way the cast bonds, forging intensely close connections to each other. They have a lot of fun on set and truly care about each other. The Star Trek: The Next Generation cast is best known for this; they stood up at each other’s weddings, they’re godparents to each other’s kids, and they see conventions as an excuse to get together again.

It’s the same for the reboot cast, which is why Yelchin’s death hit them all so hard; they didn’t just lose a colleague, they lost a family member. This should be a fun time for the group, promoting a movie they care so much about, but it’s been a struggle as they have to find a way to talk up the movie and still manage to talk about the death of their dear friend. This isn’t the legacy they were expecting to be discussing.

Quinto hit the Late Show With Stephen Colbert last week and spoke about his love of sci-fi, and his sorrow at the loss of his colleague and friend. He clearly found it difficult to talk about it for long, but he spoke about the importance of honoring Yelchin’s legacy, as well as his life as a sci-fi and Trek fan, although clearly Colbert has him beat in the fandom department.
Here’s the clip.

Simon Pegg did a radio interview in Scotland for Clyde 1 a few days ago, and also struggled when asked to talk about Yelchin, as you can see below.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/07/05/zachary-quinto-and-simon-pegg-talk-about-the-impact-of-losing-anton-yelchin/feed/26Rihanna on being a Trekkie and her song Sledgehammerhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/06/29/rihanna-on-being-a-trekkie-and-her-song-sledgehammer/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/29/rihanna-on-being-a-trekkie-and-her-song-sledgehammer/#commentsThu, 30 Jun 2016 04:07:13 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42265Back in May during the Star Trek Beyond fan event Rihanna was one of the faces that popped up on screen and professed her love for Trek. It turns out that was merely a snippet of a somewhat longer promo video that Paramount has now released on their official YouTube channel. Click on to see RiRi rocking her TOS t-shirt in the full video.

Pegg sat down with Popular Science Magazine in May and gave them an earful about everything from warp drive to on-ship pizza delivery. He talks about his favorite piece of technology, explains warp drive, and answers the classic question about who’d win a fight, Kirk or Picard.

Here are my five favorite things I learned from reading the article and watching the accompanying video.

5. All the controls on the Enterprise are touch sensitive. They all do something, they all respond. He says that as an actor, it’s a huge help, because you feel like you’re in a real environment.

“One calls for pizza, but we’re not sure which one it is. Occasionally pizzas just turn up and we know that someone’s pressed it, but it isn’t clear. They actually all work. If you press things, they light up. But nothing causes the spaceship to fly.”

4. We’re used to seeing musicians in Star Trek—Mick Fleetwood on TNG, Iggy Pop on DS9, Tom Morello on Voyager and Insurrection—but Pegg is a Star Trek star who joins musicians. He’s played the harmonica with Coldplay, multiple times. (And he’s good!) He’s been friends with Chris Martin for years and has played with them at a few shows and festivals.

“And every now and then I’ll go to see them, and Chris will be like, ‘Come on up and play!’ and I’ll go, ‘I don’t want to; I just want to enjoy the show and not feel nervous!’ But he says, ’You gotta!’ So I end up sh*tting myself for the entire show until I do my bit, and then I feel like a rock star for the rest of the night.”

3. The bridge was built on a gimbal this time around, a first for the Kelvin Timeline crew, so the days of shaking the camera while the actors fling themselves to one side and then the other are over. (Okay, that one made me a little sad.)

“. . . we didn’t have to pretend the ship was being rocked around, which is one of the most beloved Star Trek traditions: The camera shakes and the actors go LEFT! and RIGHT! There was a faint ennui about it: ‘Oh, we don’t have to pretend anymore?’”

2. Scotty gets around, thanks to his raw sex appeal.

“A lot of people go on about Kirk, and you know how he is with the ladies, but Scotty is the dark horse. He’s probably worked his way around the ship twice. I’m talking everybody. All species.”

1. When Pegg’s mother is in a situation she doesn’t like, she texts her son, “Beam me up, Scotty!”

“I’m the only person in the world who can’t say ‘Beam me up, Scotty.’ I have to say ‘Beam me up, me.’”

He also tells a sweet story about meeting James Doohan. Don’t skip the video! It’s worth it not just for the interview, but also for the harmonica playing,

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/28/simon-pegg-talks-trek-tech-kirk-v-picard-meeting-james-doohan-and-more/feed/21Rihanna single part of Beyond soundtrackhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/06/24/rihanna-single-part-of-beyond-soundtrack/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/24/rihanna-single-part-of-beyond-soundtrack/#commentsFri, 24 Jun 2016 19:00:49 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42200Rihanna fan sites are abuzz this morning with the news that the pop star is contributing a single called “Sledgehammer” to the Star Trek Beyond soundtrack, a first for the franchise. We’ve heard songs in the movies before (The Beastie Boys, Steppenwolf) but this is the first time a pop song has been officially a soundtrack single.

And who better than Rihanna? An avowed Star Trek fan, she collaborated with Dior last month on a line of “futuristic, reflective” sunglasses, inspired by Geordi La Forge’s VISOR. They range in price from $840 to $1950, so they’re not for the uncommitted. “I’ve always been obsessed with his eyewear, and when I got to Dior and saw all the materials I could play with, it all just came together,” she told Women’s Wear Daily.

She was also a famous face that popped up on the screen giving Trek some love, during the Beyond fan event last month (her segment starts at about 0:39).

Rihanna’s been talking about “Sledgehammer” since 2014, but the song is making its debut on the Beyond soundtrack. Eagle-eyed fans spotted it in a banner ad on iTunes last night, and the news has been making its way across Twitter and Instagram all morning.

The song is expected to appear during the movie’s end credits; no date on when it’ll be available to download, but we’ll keep you posted.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/24/rihanna-single-part-of-beyond-soundtrack/feed/89Star Trek Beyond Will Be Dedicated to Anton Yelchinhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/06/21/star-trek-beyond-will-be-dedicated-to-anton-yelchin/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/21/star-trek-beyond-will-be-dedicated-to-anton-yelchin/#commentsTue, 21 Jun 2016 19:26:08 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42176The producers of Star Trek Beyond have decided to dedicate the film to Anton Yelchin following his tragic death on June 19th, according to Hollywood Life. The filmmakers are allegedly in the process of adding a tribute to the film’s end credits.

This would mark the third time a Star Trek film has carried a dedication. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home carried a dedication card that appeared before the film honoring the crew of the Spaceship Challenger following the 1986 disaster. Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country was in production as series creator Gene Roddenberry’s health was deteriorating and he passed before it opened. Like Star Trek IV, the film was dedicated to Roddenberry with a title card before the opening credits.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/21/star-trek-beyond-will-be-dedicated-to-anton-yelchin/feed/66Walter Koenig Pays Tribute To Anton Yelchinhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/06/21/walter-koenig-pays-tribute-to-anton-yelchin/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/21/walter-koenig-pays-tribute-to-anton-yelchin/#commentsTue, 21 Jun 2016 16:36:02 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42172There has been a great outpouring of shock and grief from all over the world over the death of Anton Yelchin. Yesterday, Walter Koenig released a statement about the tragedy, where he speaks about the great impression the young man had on him when they met during the production of the first reboot film, Star Trek.

From Walter’s Facebook account:

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/21/walter-koenig-pays-tribute-to-anton-yelchin/feed/16Beyond press event at Cannes Lions event canceledhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/06/20/beyond-press-event-at-cannes-lions-event-canceled/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/20/beyond-press-event-at-cannes-lions-event-canceled/#commentsTue, 21 Jun 2016 05:47:37 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42170Out of respect for the terrible news of Anton Yelchin’s death this weekend, a major press stop in Europe has been canceled. Much of the cast was due to promote the film this Wednesday during the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in France.

Paramount has issued an official statement:

All of us are deeply saddened by the loss of our friend Anton Yelchin. Out of respect, we are withdrawing our participation in the previously announced Star Trek Beyond event at Cannes Lions this week.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/20/beyond-press-event-at-cannes-lions-event-canceled/feed/20Yelchin’s Jeep Recently Subject of Recall by Fiat Chrysler Over Faulty Gear Shifthttps://trekmovie.com/2016/06/20/yelchins-jeep-recently-subject-of-recall-by-fiat-chrysler-over-faulty-gear-shift/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/20/yelchins-jeep-recently-subject-of-recall-by-fiat-chrysler-over-faulty-gear-shift/#commentsMon, 20 Jun 2016 23:44:56 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42167The 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee model owned by Anton Yelchin that was involved in his tragic death on June 19th had previously been subject to a recall by manufacturer Fiat Chrysler after the company found that electronic shifts could spring back to their position after being moved to a different gear, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The National Highway Transportation Safety Agency (NHTSA) had determined that the operation of the gear shift in these models was not intuitive and provided poor tactile and visual feedback to the driver. The NHTSA found that the electronic shifts could spring back to their last position after being moved to a different gear, increasing the possibility that the vehicle could move unexpectedly if the parking brake was not applied

Fiat Chrysler automotive in April 2016 voluntarily recalled roughly 1.1 million vehicles, including 2014 and 2015 model Jeep Grand Cherokees, that had been manufactured between 2012 and 2015. The owners of the effected vehicles were to receive notices of the recall via post by mid-May 2016, and Fiat Chrysler hoped to resolve the problem by Q4 2016.

Fiat Chrysler issued a statement expressing sympathy to Yechin’s family and added that the company would conduct a thorough investigation of the accident. According to the Los Angeles Times report, at least 41 injuries were linked to the recall issue since April.

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), who is conducting an investigation into Yelchin’s death, indicated today that its investigation was only in its preliminary stages. The investigation will look into whether Yelchin’s vehicle was in gear or park at the time of the accident, according to LAPD Media Relations Officer Jane Kim.

LAPD Valley Traffic Division detective William Bustos today said the crash was partially captured by a surveillance camera and ruled out foul play. Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office Spokesman Ed Winter today announced that investigators had concluded that Yelchin’s death had been caused by blunt traumatic asphyxia.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/20/yelchins-jeep-recently-subject-of-recall-by-fiat-chrysler-over-faulty-gear-shift/feed/29Breaking News: Anton Yelchin dead at age 27 – UPDATEDhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/06/19/breaking-news-anton-yelchin-dead-at-age-27/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/19/breaking-news-anton-yelchin-dead-at-age-27/#commentsSun, 19 Jun 2016 18:45:49 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42153Some terrible surprising news this morning, the Associated Press is reporting Anton Yelchin (the new Chekov to Trek fans) has died in a car accident this morning. Our condolences to his family and friends. Press release is after the break. Updated with more details from Variety.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Anton Yelchin, a charismatic and rising actor best known for playing Chekov in the new “Star Trek” films, has died at the age of 27. He was killed in a fatal traffic collision early Sunday morning, his publicist, Jennifer Allen confirmed.

Yelchin started small with roles in indie films and various television shows, before breaking out in films like the crime thriller “Alpha Dog” and the teenage comedy “Charlie Bartlett.” His biggest role to date has been in the rebooted “Star Trek” films — the third of which, “Star Trek Beyond” comes out in July.

Yelchin, an only child, was born in Russia. His parents were professional figure skaters who moved the family to the United States when Yelchin was a baby. Yelchin’s family requests privacy at this time.

The LAPD said he was pinned by his own car at his Studio City home. Friends apparently became concerned when Yelchin did not show up for a band performance. They found him at his home pinned between his car and a brick mailbox pillar.

“It appears he had exited his car and was behind it when the vehicle rolled down a steep driveway,” the LAPD said in a statement.

Police reportedly told TMZ that the engine was still running when he was found, and that his car was in neutral. It’s not clear why he got out of his car with the engine running.

Shocked, fans and colleagues are extending their love and condolences.

Space might be the final frontier when it comes to exploration, however in the world of original programming, many creators and producers are looking towards the web and online streaming as the future. Each time a network launches an exclusive series to its streaming services, the notion becomes more plausible and closer to an ongoing fixture of the way audiences enjoy viewing entertainment at home. Former Star Trek stars Tim Russ, Aron Eisenberg and Cirroc Lofton are looking to capitalize on the phenomenon as all are slated to appear in Blade of Honor, a Kickstarter endeavor that aspires to broadcast its episodes online.

Rare is the success however of online shows that feature no network, cable or streaming distribution, as only a handful have broken into the public consciousness like Joss Whedon’s Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. Blade of Honor Co-Creator, Executive Producer and Director Mark Edward Lewis believes he has found the perfect recipe, combining ideas from some of the most popular science fiction shows of the past decades, as well as casting the actors who appeared on those programs.

“What sci-fi is missing today is relevance,” Lewis explained. “It’s fun to have battles in space, laser blasts, interesting aliens, but in the end it has to be relevant to what’s going on in the real world. Right now trust is a major issue and people are having a hard time financially.”

“I like the fact that the story takes place in the future, on a distant world, but with the same types of human struggles, interactions, and intrigue, that you would find today,” Russ added.

Tapping into the modern day allegory that science fiction has been allowed to tell for decades, which also accounted for part of Star Trek’s original success when debuting in the late 1960s and when it went into syndication in the 1970s, Blade of Honor is a political conspiracy theory wrapped in a space opera presentation. Originally, however, Lewis and his brother, John-Paul, conceived of something very different.

“About 13 years ago, my brother and I had this question in our mind,” Lewis said. “What if you were on an eva (extravehicular activity), stuck in space in a suit? What would happen if you were out there for 400 hours? Would you go insane? So we created a one-hour pilot with aliens and our heroine. We pitched it to Kristianna Loken back in the day. It sat, and over the course of 12 years we added more characters, and with the advent of crowdfunding and visual effects getting done for fraction of price, the story has evolved into something vastly different than someone going insane.”

Blade of Honor’s cast not only consists of well-know Star Trek actors and guest stars, including Jennifer Nash from Star Trek The Next Generation episode The Inner Light, but also features Battlestar Galactica’s Richard Hatch, Heroes’ James Kyson as well as several Star Trek web production performers including New Voyages’ Brandon Stacy and Rivkah Raven Wood.

Whether the current climate surrounding Star Trek fan films negatively impacts on Blade of Honor’s Kickstarter campaign remains to be seen. The fundraiser only asked fans for $30,000, which Lewis said would be enough to produce the first episode. With over $37,000 raised and under two weeks remaining, the stretch goal would be to produce a second and possible a third episode of the proposed series.

“We’ve raised enough to produce one episode,” Lewis said. “We need to investigate post production costs. If by chance we need to raise more for post, then we would use Indiegogo. The first episode of anything is the most expensive as you are laying the groundwork, corporate structure, building sets, wardrobe. It gets cheaper and cheaper after the first. When we hit our next stretch goal, it will be cheaper. We would like to raise enough to have our first five episodes done, which we would need to raise $150,000. It’s a long way, but it would give fans the most value for their donation, and perks are actually based on how many episodes in total get funded.”

Since several former Star Trek actors are scheduled to appear in the series, it’s safe to say that it will draw the attention of Trekkers, who already donate large amounts of money to other fan series that produce Star Trek and other science fiction initiatives. Whether or not Blade of Honor’s conception resonates with that group, only time will tell.

Russ is quick to note, however, the similarities to Blade of Honor and Star Trek, in that they both contain a deeper message that hopefully will connect with viewers like so many classic and beloved science fiction shows and episodes have in the past.

“I would say to Trek fans, that if they like the way in which Trek over the years has presented stories that deal with social, political, and personal issues that mirror our world and lives today, then Blade of Honor will be a show they will very much enjoy watching,” Russ said.

“I am concerned with the fact that people don’t feel as though their voices are being heard, because of outside influences corrupting their government. And the fact that the goal of certain elements in the government are only concerned with achieving and abusing power, and nothing else. In combination with the other very cool elements of the series, those elements make the series far more significant, especially when you have concepts that delve deeper into the human condition.”

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/16/blade-of-honor-kickstarter-to-feature-several-star-trek-actors/feed/9Star Trek Stars Grieve For The Victims Of The Orlando Shooting *UPDATED*https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/12/star-trek-stars-grieve-for-the-victims-of-the-orlando-shooting/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/12/star-trek-stars-grieve-for-the-victims-of-the-orlando-shooting/#commentsSun, 12 Jun 2016 21:17:57 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42064We grieve for the victims of the horrific violence in Orlando last night. Star Trek’s two biggest philosophies are “Infinite diversity in infinite combinations” and “Live long and prosper,” and violence like this could not contradict them more.

Below are messages from those who have contributed to Star Trek, as they tweet their condolences, emotions, and anger about the biggest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/12/star-trek-stars-grieve-for-the-victims-of-the-orlando-shooting/feed/124Bring A Little More Shatner Into Your Life With A Personalized E-Cardhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/06/12/bring-a-little-more-shatner-into-your-life-with-a-personalized-e-card/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/12/bring-a-little-more-shatner-into-your-life-with-a-personalized-e-card/#commentsSun, 12 Jun 2016 17:58:01 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=42056If it were within my power to send William Shatner to my friends’ homes to deliver personal messages of congratulations, happy birthdays, and assorted holiday wishes I would, because that would be awesome.

Since I don’t have that power, I can do the next best thing: send them a personalized ecard of William Shatner calling them out by name and singing their praises.

This, you see, I can do, because someone with a brilliant mind, either on William Shatner’s management team or on the American Greetings team, has made it possible.

I’m not going to tell you every single thing about it, because it’s one of those things you have to see for yourself. Waste no time. Head over to www.americangreetings.com and behold the William Shatner ecard.

First, you’ll select a name, of which there is a startling variety. They have almost every name you can think of, along with different spellings, generic endearments, family relationship names like Nephew and Mommy, and even Oprah. One glaring omission: they don’t have Karl with a K, which means Karl Urban is out of luck on his special occasions.

Next, choose a reason. Someone’s birthday? Graduation? New job? Retirement? Pregnancy? Social media success? No reason at all? It’s all covered, including a few variations on birthdays and even a congrats on getting paroled. (Good work!)

If you’re lucky enough to receive one of these babies, you’ll see William Shatner look right into your eyes from your computer screen. He’ll say your name, clearly, both visibly and audibly. There will be a song, with background singers, and they’ll know your name too. There will be another surprise that I’m not even going to tell you about in this article.

And then, once you receive this Shatner goodness, you will experience the joy of creating new cards for your friends, and watching each video, because honestly, just like William Shatner himself, it never really gets old. Also, no one’s going to tell on you if you make one—or ten—for yourself.

GET THEE TO THE WEBSITE. You can get a 7-day free trial, but you might end up forking over the $3.99 a month to send more once you’re done, because it’s really, really hard to stop sending them. (Or watching them.)

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/12/bring-a-little-more-shatner-into-your-life-with-a-personalized-e-card/feed/5Zachary Quinto and Zoe Saldana Go Head-to-head On Special Edition of Spike’s Lip Sync Battle *UPDATED*https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/02/zachary-quinto-and-zoe-saldana-go-head-to-head-on-special-edition-of-spikes-lip-sync-battle/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/06/02/zachary-quinto-and-zoe-saldana-go-head-to-head-on-special-edition-of-spikes-lip-sync-battle/#commentsFri, 03 Jun 2016 03:39:11 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=41953Spock and Uhura are throwing down next Thursday on a special one-hour edition of Spike’s Lip Sync Battle.

[UPDATE 2, 6/8]: VIDEO clip of Zoe Saldana performing “Stressed Out” by Twenty One Pilots.
Thank you, Zachary Quinto’s friends. Without you, there would be no lip sync battle between Spock and Uhura, and what fun would that be? None.

Yep, Star Trek Beyond couple Zachary Quinto and Zoe Saldana are going head-to-head on a special one-hour edition of Spike’s Lip Sync Battle. Entertainment Weekly reports that Quinto wasn’t even sure he wanted to do it until his friends talked him into it. So again: thank you Zachary Quinto’s friends. We salute you!

Both stars threw themselves into rehearsals, working with choreographers and using all the time they were given to practice. “You got to throw yourself into it headlong, show up, and hope I don’t f—k it up,” Quinto said.

Saldana kept forgetting it was a competition, then would remind herself that she was actually trying to defeat him. “I feel like Zach and I have been invited to have fun, and it’s not until somebody comes to me going [in a deep voice], ‘What words do you want to give Zach?’ and my first instinct is to go, ‘Kill it, buddy!’ Then I’m like, [deep voice again] ‘Oh yeah, I’m going to kill you! I’m going to…beat you?’”

It looks like Saldana’s doing TLC, judging both by the the promo and the rather large hint that T-Boz and Chilli are guest stars. (I was hoping for “Waterfalls,” but it looks a little too wild on set for that.) Quinto’s song choices are a mystery, but he seems to be channeling Adam Lambert, boy bands, and possibly Missy Elliott. Well, we always knew he was versatile!

The Next Generation crew may have the biggest reputation for on-set singing, but the new(er) Trek crew’s getting known for the same kind of shenanigans. Apparently they spent a lot of their Star Trek Beyond down time making dub smashes.

On the latest edition of Variety’s Actors on Actors, which features one-on-ones between this year’s Emmy contenders, Thomas Middleditch asked Patrick Stewart some personal questions about the characters of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

“Who would you want to have sexual intercourse with, who would you want to marry, and then who would you want to kill out of the following three: Will Riker, Deanna Troi and Data?” Middleditch asked Stewart.

Sir Patrick did an admirable job of his first ever game of “F—, Marry, Kill”.

“The kill would have to be Riker because he’s big and scary and very dominating,” says Stewart. “For a wife I would choose Deanna, but just as a kind of one-night stand… I would choose Data because, well think about it.”

“There was an episode where he had to present his sexual equipment for discussion. Brent Spiner (who played the character of Data), who is a wonderful actor and a very funny man, used to say, ‘he’s fully functional, in fact he has three speeds.’”

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/04/29/watch-patrick-stewart-plays-a-tng-version-of-f-marry-kill/feed/8Trek Fan and Pro Photographer Kickstarting Star Trek Portraits Book and Exhibitionhttps://trekmovie.com/2016/04/17/trek-fan-and-pro-photographer-kickstarting-star-trek-portraits-book-and-exhibition/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/04/17/trek-fan-and-pro-photographer-kickstarting-star-trek-portraits-book-and-exhibition/#commentsSun, 17 Apr 2016 22:33:56 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=41632Through his work, portrait photographer and long-time Star Trek fan Rory Lewis has had the opportunity to direct and shoot portraits of many of his icons, including Sir Patrick Stewart and William Shatner. Now, in celebration of Star Trek’s 50th anniversary year, Lewis is looking to expand his collection of Star Trek cast portraits with plans for a printed book and a traveling exhibition.

Over the course of his career as a portrait photographer working for magazines and newspapers, Rory Lewis found himself assigned to direct and photograph some of the most iconic names in Trek in intimate portrait sittings. Working one-on-one with the stars, Lewis attempts to capture displays of raw emotion in his own style.

One of our favorites is a series of Brent Spiner. “Brent is a wonderfully talented Actor,” Lewis told TrekMovie. “I directed Brent to assume expressive poses, both pensive and thought provoking. Brent is a natural in front of the camera, and in such a short time we created some wonderful portraits.”

With 2016 being the 50th anniversary year of Star Trek, Lewis decided that it was time to lay the groundwork for a bigger project. “After these two portrait sittings [with Sir Patrick Stewart and William Shatner] I thought wouldn’t it be amazing to shoot all of the Star Trek Cast in my own unique style. I began writing letters and making calls and started to arrange sittings.”

But, it proved expensive for Lewis who turned to Kickstarter to help offset travel and production costs. “[With] many of the actors living all over the world it became a difficult project. Hence I came upon Kickstarter, engaging with other fans to help create this project offering them rewards they could not find anywhere else.”

Thanks to funding from earlier Kickstarter campaigns over the last year, Lewis has already produced some stunning work. To date, he’s created portraits of:

If Lewis meets his goal of £2,000 (about $2,800 US), he promises to add an additional 4-25 portraits, with the final number depending on how much money he is ultimately able to raise. The book, which will contain all portraits funded thus far plus any extras funded by the current campaign, is scheduled to be released October of this year, with a traveling exhibit hitting the road in 2017.

Sir Patrick Stewart

Jonathan Frakes

Andrew Robinson (Garak) and Robert Picardo (The Doctor)

Lewis says that he intends to put the portraits on display in both the US and Europe next year. “I hope to display the project at the Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas in 2017 and bring the project to conventions in Europe next year. It will take another 6 months to complete all the portraits with successful funding.”

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2016/04/17/trek-fan-and-pro-photographer-kickstarting-star-trek-portraits-book-and-exhibition/feed/50Idris Elba: Captain Kirk and the Star Trek Beyond Villain Are Like… “Jaws and Dory”??https://trekmovie.com/2016/04/14/idris-elba-captain-kirk-and-the-star-trek-beyond-villain-are-like-jaws-and-dory/
https://trekmovie.com/2016/04/14/idris-elba-captain-kirk-and-the-star-trek-beyond-villain-are-like-jaws-and-dory/#commentsFri, 15 Apr 2016 01:27:40 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=41617Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Idris Elba spoke about his upcoming role as the villain in Star Trek Beyond and gave a puzzling statement about how his character and Chris Pine’s Kirk will interact. He also revealed that his favorite all-time Star Trek character is Captain Kirk.

“Captain Kirk!” exclaimed Idris Elba when asked by EW what his favorite all-time Star Trek character is. “Kirk was just smooth, man. There was nothing fazing him. In times of ridiculous peril, Mister Kirk was the coolest actor on the set.” Elba also spoke about working with the Captain Kirk of Star Trek Beyond, Chris Pine. “Working with Chris was a good old laugh,” he says. “He’s a funny boy, and a wicked professional.”

When asked about the relationship between his character and Pine’s, Elba remarked: “Can we say,” Elba says, a smile somehow audible over the phone, “Jaws and Dory?”

Now, we’re not exactly sure what that means… Elba’s character is like a giant scary force of nature, while Kirk is the playfully forgetful comic relief???

We can’t help but wonder if the EW misheard Elba utter “Jaws and Brody” referring to the famous shark and Police Chief Martin Brody who quested to capture the great white thus protecting the public.

Gary Hutzel, Emmy Award Winning VFX artist known for his work on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, has died at age 60.

Hailing originally from Ann Arbor Michigan, Gary Hutzel left his mechanical engineering studies behind to move to Santa Barbara, CA to pursue a career in the film industry. There he studied photography at the Brooks Institute and subsequently began his motion picture career working as a video camera operator, which sparked his interest in visual effects. His early VFX work was as a freelancer on CBS’s The Twilight Zone, a gig that got him noticed by the team putting together the then Star Trek reboot, The Next Generation.

Hired to work on Trek in 1987, Hutzel lead visual effects for The Next Generation for the first five seasons of its run. After the end of TNG’s fifth season, Hutzel and VFX colleague Robert Legato transferred to the new Star Trek show on the block, Deep Space Nine, which Hutzel worked on for its entire run. One of his most notable contributions to DS9 is his work on the episode “Trials and Tribble-ations” in which Hutzel oversaw the integration of footage from the Original Series episode “The Trouble With Tribbles” into the freshly shot DS9 footage. Mike Okuda has spoken highly of Hutzel’s work on that particular episode:

“I should mention that Gary Hutzel and his team were also nominated for an Emmy for their seamless integration of the original series footage with our new Deep Space Nine scenes.(…)it was Gary Hutzel who spearheaded the beautiful transfers of the original “Trouble with Tribbles” episode. Throughout the process we were constantly amazed when Gary would show us new details in the original film that we had never seen before, and we were constantly impressed with the artistry and ingenuity of Star Trek’s original designers and filmmakers.”

Hutzel was nominated for Emmy Awards for work on both Trek series, including nominations for TNG episodes “Tin Man” and “The Best of Both Worlds” Parts I & II, and DS9 episodes “The Way of the Warrior”, “Trials and Tribble-ations”, “One Little Ship”, and “What You Leave Behind”, and Emmy Award wins for TNG episode “Conundrum” and the DS9 episode “Emissary”.

Mike and Denise Okuda who worked along side Hutzel, gave their condolences on Facebook yesterday, saying:

Beyond Star Trek, Hutzel is known for his visual effects work on Battlestar Galactica and Caprica for which he was nominated for six Emmy Awards and won two more. In 2011, Hutzel reunited with Trek VFX alums on the Battlestar spinoff Blood and Chrome, which earned him yet another Emmy nomination for Outstanding Special Visual Effects that he shared with Mike Gibson (visual effects producer), David Takemura (senior visual effects coordinator), Doug Drexler (CGI supervisor), David R. Morton (CGI artist), Kyle Toucher (CGI artist), Derek Ledbetter (compositor), Heather McAuliff (compositor), and Jesse Siglow (compositor).

Tony Todd, best known for his role in Candyman, said in a podcast interview yesterday that he is on “a very short list” to play a role in the upcoming Star Trek television* series.

Tony Todd was on the MORTIS horror-themed podcast yesterday to talk his role on Candyman and his involvement the recently sued Star Trek fan film, Axanar. When asked about Trek, he told MORTIS that he is currently on a short list to be cast in the upcoming 2017 television series:

CBS is doing their own series again. I’m on a very short list.

I’m on the short list for a couple [of shows]… They’re not going to even get official cast until probably the fourth quarter of the year. And then my only concern about it is that it’s gonna be this online thing. I don’t understand that part, but… You know, I’ve never done a series regular. I’ve always avoided it because I like playing different characters, but this is one year that we’re looking at some stuff, so I’m sure that we’re gonna be poppin’ up in everybody’s living room on something soon.

Trek fans may known Tony Todd mostly for his role as Worf’s brother Kurn and older Jake Sisko from DS9 The Visitor. He has come up again in the work of Trek for his recent involvement in the Axanar fan film, which is currently being sued by Paramount and CBS. Todd left the project before suit was brought and has been vocal about his lack of confidence in the project.

Patrick Stewart stars in Christmas Eve, a new independent light-hearted Christmas comedy story of six groups of New Yorkers who become trapped in elevators over Christmas Eve night.

Patrick Stewart fans will no doubt remember his iconic role as Ebeneezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol and will be happy to know that Stewart brings plenty of that regal Scrooge-ness to his role in Christmas Eve.

The film is currently in only limited release (I saw an exclusive screening in Alexandria, Virginia) but could get picked up for broader distribution in theaters, TV, or the Internet.

Set in New York City, the film tells the stories of various characters as they become trapped in six different elevators on the night before Christmas – and of course all have the kind of amazing cathartic experiences that can only happen in movies when you’re trapped in elevator with strangers.

Christmas Eve looks surprisingly good considering how cheaply it must have been made. Since all of the different groups of characters are silo-ed in their respective elevators, the filmmakers didn’t need to come up with a complicated shooting schedule. Indeed, most of Stewart’s scenes are just him – he probably shot them all in one day.

The ensemble cast of mostly unknowns also features Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite), James Roday (the guy from Psych), Gary Cole (the boss from Office Space) and Cheryl Hines (Larry David’s wife on Curb Your Enthusiasm).

Christmas Eve is directed by Mitch Davis, who co-wrote it with Tyler McKellar, and co-produced it with Larry King. (King is of course most notable for his cameo in Ghostbusters and his 50 years in radio and television journalism.)

I give the film 3 out of 4 lights. (Is that OK to make that joke twice in one article?)

While we wait for the first Star Trek Beyond teaser to drop, let’s take a look at what’s been going on in the world of Trek this week around the web.

Niel deGrasse Tyson Confirms it: The Enterprise would beat the Millennium Falcon in a fight
“There’s no question… no question!” exclaimed Dr. Tyson of Cosmos fame (and of just being an all around awesome scientist with a knack for science communication!). When asked who would win in a fight, Star Trek’s U.S.S. Enterprise or Star Wars’s Millennium Falcon, Tyson confirmed what Trekkies already knew deep down: the Enterprise wins in a land slide.

The Enterprise has the benefit of being ‘real’ in the sense that there are scientists and real engineers on staff on the ship monitoring its engines, its warp drive, its photon torpedoes. And, so, it’s fake real, as opposed to the Millennium Falcon, which is just fake fake. [The Falcon] is part of a fantasy storytelling.

Not only that, the Enterprise — and I’ve thought long and hard about this, and I think what I’m about to say is correct — it is the first ever spaceship represented in storytelling that was not designed to go from one place to another. It was only designed to explore. Think about that.

Every movie, every show that preceded [Star Trek] built it to go to a destination. And they go, and they get out, and they pitch tent. They’re not completely living on the ship as an exploratory vehicle. That was revolutionary in terms of what we would think space would and should be about.

Plus, in a battle, the Enterprise would just wipe it’s ass with the Millennium Falcon [laughs]. I’m sorry!

Damon Lindelof admits keeping Khan a secret was a ‘mistake’
We all know of Bad Robot’s famous secrecy that shrouds every production to ever come from JJ Abrams’s powerhouse production company. But, this time, Damon Lindelof (screenwriter of Star Trek Into Darkness) admits that lying about whether the character of Khan was in the film was, in the end, a mistake.

“When we did Star Trek Into Darkness for example, we decided that we weren’t going to tell people that Benedict Cumberbatch was playing Khan” Lindelof told Variety. “And that was a mistake, because the audience was like, “We know he’s playing Khan.” That was why it was a mistake.”

The problem here, implied Lindelof, isn’t the overall secrecy. It’s the fact that the cat had been let out of its proverbial bag, and denying Khan’s presence in the film ended up coming across as a lie rather than a secret withheld for the audience’s surprise and enjoyment.

JJ Abrams made similar statements about the Khan fiasco back in 2013 saying, “The truth is I think it probably would have been smarter just to say upfront, ‘This is who it is’. It was only trying to preserve the fun of it, and it might have given people more time to acclimate and accept that’s what the thing was.”

New Trek merchandise in time for the holidays
It’s that time of year again, so start racking your brain to think up the perfect gift for the Trekkie that has everything. Both StarTrek.com and ThinkGeek have got you covered this year (look for a more extensive holiday gift giving guide soon!), and we wanted to highlight one neat new piece of Trek tech on the market: the Star Trek Transporter Pad LED Coasters for $29.99.

This set of officially licensed Star Trek coasters (a ThinkGeek exclusive) is a pack of nicely designed drink holders made to look like the original series transporter pads. They even light up to give your cocktail the effect of being suspended mid-beamout (they also play (de)materialization sounds! Squee!). The noisy coaster set may get a little bothersome if used regularly, but wouldn’t they be a great addition to a Trek-themed party or marathon?

As we edge ever closer to the picture wrap of Star Trek Beyond, still very little information has been released (officially or otherwise) about the film’s plot or even its characters. The cast and grew gathered for an official press conference today at the Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai. The event included director/producer Justin Lin, executive producer Jeffrey Chernov, writers Douglas Jung & Simon Pegg and actors Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Anton Yelchin and Idris Elba. Hit the jump for video of the event.

As usual, the cast and crew didn’t go into much detail pertaining to the plot of the film. Mostly, they spoke to what positive experiences they’ve had with their fellow stars and crew and what shooting in Dubai will bring to the film.

“We came searching for the future and we found it,” said producer Jeffrey Chernov. “We’d drive around Dubai and look at things and we’d have to figure out how we can use those visual guides to tell our story. I’d see a building and say ‘we have to figure out how to put that in our movie.’”

Chris Pine agreed, adding that Dubai is like a “futureland” with an aesthetic that a future city might have.

Simon Pegg, co-writer and co-star of the film, talked about how Beyond will be like the Star Trek we grew to love on Television but also fit into the landscape of modern cinema.

“The film industry is ever changing, and this has to be a new kind of Star Trek. So, the challenge was to marry the two: the traditional Star Trek that everyone grew up watching, and our Star Trek, which is a much more new [sort of thing] very much represented by our presence here in Dubai.”

Idris Elba, who has been cast as the villain of Star Trek Beyond, gave an interview with MTV recently where he described his character as, among other things, “groundbreaking” for the Star Trek franchise.

I think ’Star Trek’ has prided themselves as being quite classic when it comes to villains, like ’he’s a guy who wants to end the world,’ there’s no doubt about that. But in this version of the film, there’s a slightly different twist to that. It’s quite an interesting journey, which I think is groundbreaking for the franchise. But, it still keeps with the ’classic bad guy is a classic bad guy’ tone.

Now, I have absolutely no idea what any of this means. Honestly Elba’s quote kind of reminds me of the behind the scenes footage from Star Trek Nemesis where director Stuart Baird insists that Shinzon wasn’t really a “bad guy” (despite all the mass murder and mind rape and stuff). However, it seems more likely that Elba and his publicity team have successfully grabbed a lot of attention without giving anything away – that’s smart Internet.

So now we know there’s a groundbreaking twist to this villain, but not much else.

Cinemablend speculated that he could be General Chang, Commander Kruge, Admiral Cartwright, the God of Sha Ka Ree, Sybok, or the Gorn. Writer/Scotty Simon Pegg has intimated that he is not a Klingon, that rules out the first two. (However, “Khan” was also said to not be “Khan” for Into Darkness, so who knows?)

Star Trek V is such a sore spot in the franchise I doubt anyone wants to revisit it. And Admiral Marcus from Into Darkness fulfilled the same purpose that a rebooted Admiral Cartwright might (hardly “groundbreaking”). That would basically just leave the Gorn. We do know that assistant villain Sofia Boutella will wear make-up that makes her look like a Xindi skunk, so some hard core Gorn seems unlikely.

Now it’s possible that Elba is using the term “groundbreaking” in the literal sense, and that his villain’s scheme is to create artificial earthquakes to kill everyone on the Earth’s surface, except for his own “master race” on Mt. Everest. So yes, I am betting right now that Elba’s character is none other than Hippocrates Noah, supervillain of Dr. Bashir’s spy program.

Michael Dorn joins the judges as they inspect the contestants final creations.

We’re into the ninth season of Syfy’s Face Off, which continues to be the network’s highest rated unscripted series. This week’s make-up theme is Star Trek, so I was eager to see where they took the challenge. The episode is in the series typical two challenge format, however this time the way they tie it back to Star Trek is that in the first round the contestants have to create an alien design based on a different background assigned to each person, and in the second they’re tasked to update it for a Next Generation era feel.

Since the first round is always only a few hours in length, the challenge was to come up with an alien character with a TOS-era look (read: relatively simplistic and something they could pound out quickly). Host McKenzie Westmore‘s father, Michael Westmore returns again as the guest mentor & judge for the remaining contestants. His being on any episode is a plus, as he, more than many of the featured industry guests, continues to have some of the best feedback and helpful ideas for the various competitors.

I’ve no idea where the costume closet that they raid pieces from is, but they did make use of a Galaxy Quest costume (since it’s one my favorite Star Trek movies, I was bummed none of the judges or contestants mentioned it). Once the initial challenge is complete and the winner selected, it was time to move on to the second round. The twist in this episode beyond that of the norm, is that the second round was a challenge to make a “Next Generation” variation of the design created in the first round. They were to take those same alien designs but update them with a two-day makeup and prosthetic build session to showcase their ability to modernize and expand on an initial creation.

An ever-jovial Jonathan Frakes appears halfway through the episode to join Michael in giving the various competitors feedback and to ask questions about the directions they were taking on their designs. Michael Dorn appears and joins in the action as a judge during the final reveal of the models wearing the full costumes, makeup, and prosthetics.

The episode ties itself together better than most in that you get to see each contestant take a second stab at their designs. Some realize just where to go to make it really pop, while others have that deer caught in the headlights look. I could still wish that there’d be more time given to heading the feedback and suggestions given by Jonathan and Michael to the various designs, but overall getting to see where modern makeup artists are able to go with little time and lots of pressure (and skipping the too-common interpersonal drama that plagues so many of these competition shows) continues to be a leading reason why Face Off’s ratings numbers remain among Syfy’s highest.

Face Off shows Tuesday nights at 9 p.m./8 p.m. central.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2015/09/01/syfys-face-off-tackles-star-trek/feed/34Editorial: With Lydia Wilson as latest addition to Star Trek Beyond cast, can we expect a strong female role or another Carol Marcus?https://trekmovie.com/2015/08/19/lydia-wilson-latest-addition-to-star-trek-beyond-cast-can-we-expect-a-strong-female-role-or-another-carol-marcus/
https://trekmovie.com/2015/08/19/lydia-wilson-latest-addition-to-star-trek-beyond-cast-can-we-expect-a-strong-female-role-or-another-carol-marcus/#commentsThu, 20 Aug 2015 00:19:49 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=40865

Lydia Wilson has just been announced as the latest addition to the growing call sheet for Star Trek Beyond, currently filming in Vancouver. As usual, no one has any clue as to what her role might be (although there is plenty of speculation abound). I am excited about the addition of another female presence on the screen, but I remain cautiously optimistic after our “strong female role model” Carol Marcus turned into a one-trick pony designed to catch Kirk’s (and the audience’s) romantic interest.

Lydia Wilson, while you may not know her name, has built herself a rather impressive on- and off-screen resume. She is perhaps most famous for her roles in the time-travel themed romantic comedy About Time and sci-fi romance Never Let Me Go. Wilson has also made her mark in British theater and on television, appearing in shows Ripper Street and Misfits. Will Lydia’s new mystery character, along with Sofia Boutella and Zoe Saldana’s Uhura make for a more balanced film this time around? One can only hope.

What went wrong with Carol Marcus?
It’s been no secret that I personally was not the biggest fan of the Carol Marcus underwear scene in Star Trek Into Darkness. And, I’m not alone in that feeling. Even Damon Lindelof, one of the film’s writers, apologized for the “gratuitous” scene being written into the film.

I won’t reiterate the details of my arguments as to why this particular scene rubbed me the wrong way. For that, I invite you to read my article from just after STID hit theaters. What I will remind you of, however, is that Carol, played by the beautiful and talented Alice Eve, started as a strong, independent, intelligent character who just happened to be female. In that one short little scene in the back of that shuttlecraft, the writers ceremoniously undid everything they had set her character up to be. They turned her from role model into squeeze-of-the-week love interest.

The role of women in Star Trek
Star Trek has had its share of good moments and its bad when it comes to women of the 23rd (and beyond) century. Overall, I’d have to give Star Trek pretty high marks for its treatment of women in general, extra credit given to a smattering of cringeworthy moments when each of the series and movies are analyzed as products of their respective times (well, maybe with the exception of ENT).

The latest incarnation of Trek, however, has left something of a bitter taste in my mouth when it comes to the representation of the “fairer sex” on screen. Star Trek (2009) wasn’t half bad. It wasn’t outrightly sexist, in my opinion, but we didn’t get to see a lot of female action, save for Uhura’s badass communications skills. I give some slack to the writers for having to work with an almost exclusively male main cast, gifted to them straight from the 1960’s.

Star Trek Into Darkness took a step in the wrong direction, with Uhura being relegated to Spock’s overly emotional love interest and Dr. Carol Marcus… well… you know. Let’s just say I’ll be happy if this trend doesn’t continue.

The two leading men with our leading lady, who may no longer be our last hope for strong women in STB

Will Star Trek Beyond break the mold?
One can only hope that with a new director and, perhaps most importantly, a new set of writers, we’ll get to see Lydia, Sofia, and Zoe shine in Trek 13.

Speculation is abound as to what role Lydia could be playing in Beyond. Although none of these rumors have any indication of ties with reality, let’s go over them anyways (and speculate more in the comments!). The front runners for Lydia’s role are currently:

A Starfleet captain who challenges Captain Kirk

The president of the United Federation of Planets (unlikely given Wilson’s youth)

Bones’s ex-wife

Leading love interest

Gender-bender Khan (I just made this up. Let’s start this rumor!)

???

Like I said, I remain hopeful at the present time. With so little information out there, a lot of things could go wrong or right with Star Trek Beyond between now and its summer 2016 release. Here’s hoping for: a good script, good director, good villain, good action scenes, more exploration away from Earth, humanist viewpoints, and a strong female character.

In what is proving to be a very sad year for Trek fans, yet another star has passed: Yvonne Craig, who guest starred in the episode Whom Gods Destroy as the green Orion slave girl Marta. While we love her for the spunk and energy she brought to the episode, Craig much more widely known for her role as Batgirl in the Adam West Batman TV series.

Craig’s connection to Trek didn’t start as a minion to Garth of Izar. She was a finalist for the role of Vina in the original pilot The Cage, a role which would have likewise required her to green up as an Orion.
Although she would see further success as an actress, appearing in two films with Elvis Presley (whom she was dating at the time) and several TV shows, Craig eventually retired from acting and went into real estate.
Various stars and fans tweeted out their love and fondness for Craig.

Sad to learn of Yvonne's passing. As Batgirl she was one of America's sweethearts.

Propworx will be holding the next installment of their Star Trek Auction series this weekend as part of Creation Entertainment’s Star Trek Las Vegas convention. With interest in Star Trek as keen as ever by both serious collectors as well as first time buyers, and happening in the midst of Creation’s flagship annual event, bidding is expected to be fast and furious this weekend.

“10% of the auction fees generated by the sale will go towards the financing of the upcoming feature film, Axanar, ” said Propworx CEO, Alec Peters. “We’re really excited to be partnered with Creation to bring a live auction of original series props and costumes to the fans.”

The Propworx area at Star Trek Las Vegas

Seeing original Trek props and costumes come on the open market was until recently an almost unheard of occurrence, but with the recent films and spate of high quality fan productions circulating has helped coax collectors to put pieces back up on the block. At this Sunday’s auction more than 150 original props, costumes, models, and production materials will be up for bid.

“Trials & Tribble-ations” D7 filming model

Picking out what items to mention as key depends highly on what speaks to any individual fan. For costume fans there’s a Final Frontier Captain Kirk uniform and Deep Space Nine Klingon warrior uniform, as well as dozens of others from DS9, Next Generation, Voyager, and a range of the films. For those who might like one of the original filming ship models, there’s a rare filming miniature of the Klingon’s signature ship the D7 used in the award winning episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine “Trials & Tribble-ations”.

The auction will be run via LiveAuctioneers.com, and can be attended by people not only at the convention but also by submitting both pre-auction bids and participating during the auction online.

With less than a year until Star Trek Beyond beams, warps, or is hurtled by a powerful alien known as the Caretaker into theaters near you, news of the production is beginning to trickle in. The most recent news item is that actor/martial artist Joe Taslim is joining the cast.

The actor was relatively unknown outside of his native Indonesia until he jump-kicked his way on to screens with 2013’s Fast & Furious 6, directed by Justin Lin, who is also helming Star Trek Beyond. The Hollywood Reporter broke the story over the weekend.

Here’s the talented fighter in action:

So far there’s no official comment from the actor or the studio on what role Taslim may play, but it is presumed that he will be a minion of Idris Elba, widely thought to be the film’s villain. In terms of my own wild speculation, it seems likely that at some point he will square off against John Cho’s Sulu in some form of space-karate match. That may seem like a stereotype to presume that two Asian guys, in a movie directed by an Asian guy, will inevitably come to blows – but that would also be awesome, so I am sticking to that presumption.

If Elba is playing a Klingon, then it follows Taslim probably is too. But Simon Pegg mostly dispelled the rumor, so I am going to stick with my presumption that Elba will play Dr. Richard Daystrom. If that’s true, then the bad guys’ minions might be robots; if that’s true, then Taslim could maybe play Data’s creator Noonian Soong (who would have been a young man in the TOS time period).

Soong (or Song) is an Asian surname, although Brent Spiner isn’t, so I may be grasping at holo-straws.

Apart from Sulu, there are not a lot of specifically Asian characters from The Original Series to choose from, unless he’s the Excalbian-reproduced Genghis Khan from The Savage Curtain. In that case, predict the studio to be very coy about how Taslim is not Khan, but how he actually is in a twist that surprises exactly no one.

Republican presidential hopeful Ted Cruz spoke out today on what is surely the only real question we should be asking candidates for the highest office in the United States: Kirk or Picard? In a New York Times interview, the Texas senator picked Kirk as the best captain, stating, “I think it is quite likely that Kirk is a Republican and Picard is a Democrat.”

You’re also a fan of ‘‘Star Trek.’’ Do you prefer Captain Kirk or Captain Picard?

Absolutely James Tiberius Kirk.

Leave it to the New York Times to ask the truly pressing questions of our national leaders. And leave it to Trekkies to parse every syllable of any public rhetoric on their favorite franchise (that’s where you come in, commenters!).

Senator Ted Cruz stated that a man like Kirk (himself perhaps?) is what America needs in the White House.

The original ‘‘Star Trek’’ was grittier. Kirk is working class; Picard is an aristocrat. Kirk is a passionate fighter for justice; Picard is a cerebral philosopher. The original ‘‘Star Trek’’ pressed for racial equality, which was one of its best characteristics, but it did so without sermonizing.

Cruz argues that Picard was designed to represent two sides of one man: the passive Picard and the passionate Riker.

Let me do a little psychoanalysis. If you look at ‘‘Star Trek: The Next Generation,’’ it basically split James T. Kirk into two people. Picard was Kirk’s rational side, and William Riker was his passionate side. I prefer a complete captain. To be effective, you need both heart and mind.

Of course, many would be quick to argue that Kirk himself was actually split into three entities: Kirk (the Id), Spock (the Ego), and Bones (the Superego). When the interviewer suggested some character traits shared between Kirk and Cruz, the senator had this to say:

Well, thank you. I can affirmatively say that I have made out with far fewer space aliens.

“I knew at a very young age that I was gay,” says John Barrowman, famous for playing Captain Jack Harkness on Doctor Who. Barrowman joined the coalition’s founder Chase Masterson (DS9) along side founders of the NOH8 campaign, actors, writers, and even the President of San Diego’s United Nations Association Chapter, to tell stories of how he overcame bullying as a child.

“The Coalition is doing unprecedented, powerful work,” Chase Masterson of Star Trek Deep Space Nine told TrekMovie. Masterson is proud of what her group has accomplished, and rightfully so. The Coalition is stepping up to offer support for bullied kids and adults in a time when it is sorely needed by tackling nerd-centric yet broadly reaching topics such as bullying, racism, LGBT issues, cyber bullying, and misogyny to name a few. “We’re standing for heroism, off-screen as well as on.”

While it is nearly impossible to track the amount of bullying in the world, organizations that gather statistics on bullying have noted an increase in reported cases of bullying, particularly cyberbullying.

Masterson encourages fans to help others in need. “We all love superheroes,” said Masterson to the crowd. “So, why not be one?”

Nichelle Nichols (Uhura of Star Trek The Original Series) suffered a mild stroke while in her LA home last night. She is currently undergoing testing, with no word yet on how severe the stroke was. We will bring you updates as they are reported.

[UPDATE] CAT scan results are back and Nichelle is reported to be in good spirits.

[UPDATE 2] MRI results are back indicating the stroke was minor. Nichelle starts therapy today and is reportedly bright and cheerful

Nichelle Nichols’s official facebook page reported today that the 82-year-old actress best know for playing Lt. Uhura in Star Trek The Original Series suffered a “mild stroke” last night while in her home in Los Angeles.

Official Statement
Last night while at her home in LA, Nichelle Nichols suffered from a mild stroke. She is currently undergoing testing to determine how severe the stroke was. Please keep her in your thoughts.

-Zach McGinnis
Galactic Productions, LLC

UPDATE

Update #1 6:25pm June 4, 2015
Nichelle Nichols has had both a CAT scan and an MRI today. The CAT scan came back negative and we are awaiting the results from the MRI. Currently she is awake, eating, in good spirits and able to have full conversations. Her right side has shown minor signs or mobility loss but she is not showing any signs of paralyses.

We greatly appreciate all of the love and support her fans are showing at this time.
-Zach McGinnis

Galactic Productions, LLC

UPDATE 2

Update #2 10:15am June 5, 2016
The MRI showed that Nichelle Nichols had a MINOR stroke. She will start therapy this morning to evaluate how much damage was done, and try to determine her chances for a full or partial recovery. The therapists will test her hand at writing and legs to see if she can stand and walk on her own. Last night Nichelle remained alert, and cheerful.

When we told her about the love and support coming in from around the world she smiled and asked to see the posts on her facebook.

Thank you again for all of your kind words. Keep them coming because Nichelle is reading them.
Feel free to post your pictures with Nichelle and a story about when you met her.

This weekend saw TrekTrax (newly redubbed Treklanta) host the very first Star Trek Independent Fan Film Awards and the results are in. It continues to be a great growth year with more amazing productions coming into the field and the existing group maturing and continuing to set the bar for the rest.

Before we get to the winners, let’s take a moment to send a shout out to the full listing of the 2015 nominees:

Kudos to everyone that was nominated, and really, to everyone who continues to keep Trek alive by be a part of those as well as all of the rest of the independent projects that are out there. It’s been a half century since the original series aired and began a legacy which continues to inspire filmmakers, writers, artists, and fans. Recognizing their efforts and celebrating their outstanding achievements helps to set the bar for the upcoming year and it’ll be exciting to see where the community of creators takes it next.

In the latest of what will no doubt be a very long series of memorials for Leonard Nimoy, Spock heir apparent Zachary Quinto and Conan O’Brien discussed the late actor and director on the latter’s show last night.

Quinto dropped by Conan last night to promote NBC’s The Slap, but of course the pair reminisced with memories of a mutual friend and the original Mr. Spock, Leonard Nimoy. Discussing his time with The Simpsons, O’Brien says he worked with countless guest stars – but when he got to see Nimoy in the recording studio the talk show host “freaked out.” Video of the exchange is here:

Trek has lost another of its shining stars: Harve Bennett, who died on February 25th in Medford, Oregon.

Notwithstanding that I probably use too many superlatives, I am confident saying that Star Trek as we know it today would not exist without Bennett. After the studio (quite rightly) booted Roddenberry out of the captain’s chair after The Motion Picture, it gave command to Bennett, who wrote and produced Trek’s “holy trilogy” of Wrath of Khan, Search for Spock, and Voyage Home.

Recognizing the creative input on the trilogy from many talented people (notably Nicholas Meyer, Jack Sowards, and – of course – Leonard Nimoy), Bennett’s leadership on these three films made them the enduring darlings they are to Trek fans today. In the broader public’s mind, that trilogy transitioned Star Trek from a campy 60s science fiction show for nerds into a smart, sophisticated franchise for the whole family.

Moreover, the immediate financial success of those three films gave Paramount the impetus to green light The Next Generation.

In an interesting division of labor on Voyage Home, Bennett wrote all the 23rd Century scenes and Meyer wrote everything on Earth. So we can’t credit Bennett with “double dumb-ass on you,” “colorful metaphors,” or “nuclear wessels.” But he did have exclusive writing credit on Search for Spock, so he can claim my personal favorite scene in all of Star Trek.

Seriously that “how many fingers am I holding up?” is genius.

Bennett also produced Final Frontier. Paramount wanted him to produce the next film, but he felt they couldn’t make a good movie in such a compressed time span (a little over a year from first draft to release), and decided it was time to leave.

Nor did he ever write, or even cameo in, an episode of the four modern series. The book Inside Star Trek: The Real Story suggests that Roddenberry had a longstanding dispute with Bennett, which might explain why he never joined the TNG crew.

At a Q and A with fans a few years ago, he gave his opinions on the reboot and says that he’d suggested doing a series on young Kirk and crew as far back as the 80s.

A pragmatic filmmaker, he once said: “When you go where no man has gone before, you have to build things and then it starts getting expensive.” (Maybe it explains why he set one of his movies in San Francisco.) For more on the behind the scenes of Treks 2, 3, and 4, I’d recommend the videos by SF Debris.

And seriously … if you haven’t re-watched Wrath of Khan yet this week, go do it right now.

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2015/03/06/creative-genius-behind-treks-holy-trilogy-harve-bennett-dies/feed/170Dr. Bashir, I presume? New photo of Alexander Siddig from Game of Thrones, but no videohttps://trekmovie.com/2015/02/02/dr-bashir-i-presume-new-photo-of-alexander-siddig-from-game-of-thrones-but-no-video/
https://trekmovie.com/2015/02/02/dr-bashir-i-presume-new-photo-of-alexander-siddig-from-game-of-thrones-but-no-video/#commentsMon, 02 Feb 2015 21:23:22 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=40057

Star Trek fans who were hoping to get their first glance of Deep Space Nine’s Dr. Bashir as Prince Doran Martell in the fifth season of the hit HBO series Game of Thrones were disappointed last week after the new trailer didn’t feature a single shot of our favorite smarmy doctor. But, you won’t have to wait until April for a glance of Siddig in his new stately attire; A publicity shot of Prince Martell was released Friday.

Friday the first trailer for Game of Thrones season 5 dropped, which set plenty of fanboys hearts aflutter after season 4 wrapped seven months ago.

Now the Venn Diagram for Trek fans and Game of Thrones fans probably has a lot of overlap… this fan of both series is eager to see the first video of Alexander Siddig in the series. Known as the inimitable Dr. Bashir from DS9, Siddig has been cast as Prince Doran Martell for Game of Thrones season 5 and beyond. But Bashir isn’t even in the trailer! Which is aggravating. There are a couple shots where I thought I saw him, but some repeat viewing and quick Google searches confirmed he’s not there. This new publicity photo of him was released Friday though, so we’ll take that:

In the Song of Ice and Fire books, Doran Martell is a scheming lord of his own domain (Dorne) – his brother and sister have been killed because of the Lannisters and he plots his revenge. It remains unknown if he understands the difference between a preganglionic fiber and postganglionic nerve.

On Saturday we reported about the Twitter campaign #BringInRiker which aims to draft the former Number One to be the current director for Star Trek No. 3. Yesterday the actor cum director broke silence and began enthusiastically bidding for the part.

Riker wants in on the Trek 3 director’s chair
Just yesterday, Jonathan Frakes announced that he loves the twitter campaign and would be thrilled to direct the next Star Trek movie. While he has not responded on Twitter, he did give an interview to KOMO News Radio, wherein he said:

Hashtag, BringInRiker! I’m all over it. I’m all over it. … I say, unabashedly, I’d be great at it and would love to do it. … I’m trying to keep the lid on how excited I am about the possibility, knowing it’s such a long shot. But there’s nothing I would like better.

There’s been no response from Paramount on the subject, nor is there any reason to believe they’d respond to a grassroots Internet campaign. But it is reassuring to know that our beard-growing second-in-command misses us as much as we miss him.

Also when it comes to commanding attention on the Internet, former helmsmen of the Enterprise seem to have more luck than former first officers. With only 260,000 followers on Twitter, Frakes doesn’t command anywhere near the attention of George Takei (8 million followers on Facebook) or Wil Wheaton (2.74 million on Twitter and 1 million on YouTube).

But to help take him from the captain’s chair to the director’s chair, Frakes could be trying to change that.

Reddit user stephbcv announced yesterday ago that he’d been on the phone with Frakes about a webseries shooting in LA that’s looking for extras. No details are forthcoming, but could this be a series to win Frakes some more Internet plaudits and help promote him as a directorial candidate?

Stephbcv had not responded as of deadline. Maybe it’s just a commercial for gagh:

]]>https://trekmovie.com/2014/12/11/frakes-wants-bringinriker-to-put-him-in-the-captains-chair-of-star-trek-3/feed/188Creation celebrates the Next Generation in Seattle and San Francisco this weekendhttps://trekmovie.com/2014/12/10/creation-celebrates-the-next-generation-in-seattle-and-san-francisco-this-weekend/
https://trekmovie.com/2014/12/10/creation-celebrates-the-next-generation-in-seattle-and-san-francisco-this-weekend/#commentsThu, 11 Dec 2014 07:35:52 +0000https://trekmovie.com/?p=39733

Love them or not, one can’t deny that Creation Entertainment has built an enduring calendar of annual events. If you’ve never been to a convention put on by Creation, they are indeed a bit different than most pop-culture conventions. The first thing to strike a visitor is that these events are fairly low-key affairs. That’s not to say that they’re not very well attended; there’s a healthy crowd, but it’s not shoulder-to-shoulder, and definitely once you’re past picking up your registration badge, not the typical bumper-car experience. They tightly control the daily number of attendees to make sure that every person at the event can make it into the main session rooms to enjoy the experience.

After my experiences at events around the country, watching people stand in multi-hour lines only to wind up not making it into a headliner panels, this kind of approach was a tremendous relief. In short, if you have a ticket, you know you’ll have a seat. The general admission is unassigned seating, but they have a range of additional VIP levels that secures holders a particular reserved seat for the whole of the weekend. Knowing that you can up and leave and come back after grabbing some lunch and that seat is still there waiting for you greatly reduces the stress and hassle.

This weekend they’re doing a marathon combination of holding events in both Seattle (at the Meydenbauer Center) and in San Francisco (at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport) from December 12th – 14th. With some of the myriad Trek talent jet-setting from one city to the other in a single weekend. The event will celebrate all of the various Star Trek incarnations, and will also be featuring special a special evening event of the Next Generation Reunion Show (Friday at 6:30pm in San Francisco and Saturday at 6:30pm in Seattle).

San Francisco

In addition to celebrity appearances, the non-stop auditorium show will include behind the scenes presentations, costume and trivia contests, no minimum bid auctions of unique collectibles and one-of-a-kind items, and special salute videos and previews of upcoming sci-fi television shows and motion pictures. Also there will be an exhibit hall on StarTrek and sci-fi collectibles, and autographs and photo ops.

The convention’s co-founder, Adam Malin, can often be seen moving around the event, checking on attendees, vendors, and guests, each with the same effort to make sure everyone is having a smooth and enjoyable experience.

Online ticketing is not longer available this close to the event weekend, but tickets will be available for purchase at the door.

Stephen Colbert once again showed his love for Star Trek on last night’s The Colbert Report with an extended comparison between the episode "A Taste of Armageddon" and next week’s midterm elections in the US, and he also got a hand from George Takei. Watch it below.

Colbert’s Taste of Midterm Armageddon With George Takei

Last night Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report featured Stephen Colbert taking a lesson from the Star Trek TOS episode "A Taste of Armageddon" on how America could have computers simulate our elections instead of the bother of actually voting. George Takei was beamed in to set him straight. Watch it below.

Star Trek’s new Chekov is talking a bit about the 2016 Star Trek movie, including his view on possibly working with William Shatner. See details below.

Yelchin Talks Trek 2016

In an interview promoting his new film Rudderless, Anton Yelchin answered a couple of questions about the 2016 Star Trek movie. Regarding the reports that William Shatner may have a role the actor said he had read the reports was very enthusiastic about the possibility of working with the legendary actor, telling Collider:

Totally! Absolutely, yeah! I don’t know anything about the project yet. They keep it under wraps until the last minute, for the world and for us. But if that is indeed true, William Shatner is one of the biggest icons in American pop culture. To be around him would be really incredible. He’s Captain Kirk. It would be like being with Leonard Nimoy, who’s also really incredible.

As for the shooting schedule, Yelchin had this to say:

All I really know is that they’re probably going to shoot it next year. They really do keep it under wraps for everyone involved, really, until it happens and they’re like, “Now, you show up for four or five months.” But, I have a fun time doing it. It’s a lot of fun. But, that’s Bad Robot’s process.

You can see Yelchin in the new drama Rudderless in limited theaters and VOD starting October 17th. More info at the official site. Watch the trailer below.

Yelchin signs up for new thriller and protests his next movie

Today it was reported that Yelchin is re-teaming with his Fright Night co-star Imegen Poots to star in Green Room, an indie thriller where Anton will play the leader of a punk band who witnesses a murder. The film is set to begin shooting in November.

As for the next film due in theaters, Anton will be appearing alongside Nicholas Cage in the espionage thriller Dying of the Light which will be released December 5th. The theatrical trailer was released yesterday. However, there is a wrinkle. Today, in a post on Facebook, the film’s director Paul Schrader made it clear that the film "was taken away" from him and "reedited, scored and mixed" without his input. Due to a non-disparagement clause, he could not say anything bad about the film However, but he did create a poster featuring himself, stars Yelchin and Cage, and producer Nic Winding Refn all wearing T-shirts with the non-disparagement clause.

Stars Anton Yelchin and Nick Cage join the producer and director in a special ‘non-disparagement’ poster for Dying of the Light – sending the message they don’t like the version that will be released in December

This weekend New York Comic Con has returned to The Big Apple with another Star Trek: TNG reunion as part of the festivities for Friday night. TrekMovie was there to bring you video highlights from the event, including the stars talking about cameos for the 2016 Star Trek movie, discussing Trek pre and post-death of creator Gene Roddenberry and Patrick Stewart even demonstrated his (bad) French accent. Get the details and watch the video clips below.

TNG Reunion at NYCC

LeVar Burton, Denise Crosby, Michael Dorn, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, Brent Spiner, Patrick Stewart, along with John de Lancie, took part in an event reuniting cast members from Star Trek: The Next Generation at the Hammerstein Ballroom on Friday, October 10th. William Shatner emceed the event before an audience of New York Comic Con goers and after quick intro, Bill invited questions from the audience, mostly eliciting testimonials from fans (one person thanked the cast for helping him get out of parking tickets because he and the ticketing police officer shared a love of the show).

TNG Stars (mostly) not interested in ST2016 Cameos, except Sirtis who wants to be Nurse Chapel

In the early part of the proceedings, I was able to ask the cast if they were interested in making a cameo in the forthcoming Star Trek film (specifically, playing a different role from their original character). Several cast members expressed skepticism towards the idea, except for Marina Sirtis and to a more humorous degree, Brent Spiner and Denise Crosby. Here is a summary of their reactions:

Levar Burton: "Playing a character that isn’t Geordi LaForge?…That would be a no."

Brent Spiner (joked): "I would certainly be honored to be in the third Star Trek film, playing all of the characters. And all of their families.

Gates McFadden: "I’m gonna have to pass on that."

Patrick Stewart: "I think it would smack of kind of ‘cute’ casting to have any of us in the Star Trek movie…I just think it would be a little awkward…For me, Levar said it in one word, ‘no.’"

Michael Dorn: "No…I agree with Patrick. At a certain point it just gets to be a little too much."

Marina Sirtis: "Yes! And I would be nurse Chapel."

John DeLancie: "It would put a lie to the notion that I am immortal, I’m afraid. It’s somebody else’s dinner party and if they are going to invite me, I’ll think about it then, but I don’t even think about it."

Another audience member asked the cast to respond to idea that the show veered away from Gene Roddenberry’s hopeful vision of humanity’s future in the time following his death in 1991. While the actors were mindful to qualify their answers with the utmost respect for their show’s creator, the group sentiment was that storytelling improved through Rick Berman’s guidance towards exploring the interpersonal dynamics among the crew. During this discussion, Marina Sirtis recalled that Gene Roddenberry "hated" the concept of the forthcoming "Deep Space Nine" series and openly expressed his opposition before his death- thus conflicting with the long-standing claim by that show’s producers who said Roddenberry had given them his blessing.

Watch the discussion below:

Stewart demonstrates bad French accent

One lighthearted moment came when a fan asked why the Jean Luc Picard spoke with a British accent and not a French accent. Stewart said that deep in the vaults of Paramount was test footage of him as Picard with a French accent. He then demonstrated his ‘Clouseau-like’ Picard.

Overall, the reunion focused on the impact of the series (now 20 years removed from its first run) and how it will continue to reside in homes around the world for many generations to come.

Adam Cohen is a member of PreOrder66.com, a toy collecting podcast, who also writes obsessively about Star Trek and his cat on his Twitter feed @TheJackSack

Star Trek is once again intersection with NASA and the real space program. This time Nichelle Nichols has narrated a new video introducing the Orion spacecraft, which is just getting ready to launch its first space test. Watch it below.

Nichols Narrates New NASA Orion Video

Nichelle Nichols has a long history working with NASA and helping with their outreach. Her latest collaboration with the space agency is a brand new video introducing NASA’s next manned spacecraft – the Orion. Watch it below.

Nichols isn’t the only original Star Trek crewmember who is supporting Orion this week. A few days ago William Shatner shared a tweet (with his 2 million followers) about the The Orion "Send Your Name Into Space" program, which gets your name on the Orion test flight planned for early December.